Similar to the small, brightly-colored poison frogs of South America, mantellas are native to the forests and streams of Madagascar. For many years, scientists thought mantellas of Madagascar were closely related to South America’s poison frogs, which they resemble.

Physical Description

The green mantella can actually be green, golden or black in color. They have a black striped mask pattern that runs across their face and down part of their body.

Size

Tiny frogs, they are usually only about 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) long, about the length of a paperclip.

Native Habitat

They can be found in the deciduous forests of Madagascar, near temporary brooks and streams with shade and vegetation.

Lifespan

They live for 5 to 10 years.

Communication

In the spring, males vocally claim and defend territories. If they encounter another male, they will wrestle until one is forced out. The males also use short, clicking calls to attract females. Their calls last less than 30 milliseconds.

Food/Eating Habits

These frogs mainly eat insects, including ants, fruit flies, termites and other small arthropods like spiders. They will also sometimes eat fruit, especially soft fruit that has fallen to the forest floor. Like most frogs, they need water but don’t actually drink it. Rather, they absorb all the water they need through their permeable skin.

Sleep Habits

As a diurnal species, these frogs are active during the daytime, which they mostly spend hunting for food. 

Social Structure

These frogs live in small colonies that usually include about twice as many males as females. 

Reproduction and Development

After mating, females lay between 15 to 60 golden-green eggs under rocks or in dead tree trunks during the first big rainstorm of the spring. Male mantellas guard the eggs. During a heavy rain, the tadpoles will hatch and ride the rainwater into small pools on the forest floor. There, they will eat algae until they grow to their adult size after about 45 to 65 days. 

Conservation Efforts

The main threat facing mantellas is habitat loss due to fires, logging, firewood collection and livestock grazing. Habitat loss has led to their range becoming highly fragmented, meaning local populations are isolated, which limits genetic diversity and make it harder for the species to adapt and survive. Rising sea levels due to climate change have also isolated some island populations of mantellas. 

Additionally, many amphibian populations are at risk from the threat of various strains of amphibian chytrid fungus. Although the effects of the fungus are still uncertain in a number of amphibian species in Madagascar, populations of green mantellas do not appear to have shown widespread decline to date.

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