Input E · SCIENCE ARTICLE

A FROG HIDING IN THE CITY

How a familiar-looking frog turned out to be something different.

A

In spring 2024, university students surveying rainwater ponds beside an old railway noticed tiny brown frogs with unusually sharp calls. At first, they thought the sound was only a local variation because the frogs looked very similar to a common city species.

B

A research team returned after dark to six ponds, recorded the calls, photographed the frogs and took harmless skin swabs. DNA analysis showed that the frogs were genetically distinct, while recordings showed that the males repeated shorter calls. The two kinds looked so similar that appearance alone could not reliably separate them.

C

The newly identified frog was found only in shallow ponds and drainage channels within about three kilometres. Some ponds nearly dry out by late summer, and planned construction lay close to two breeding sites. This small known range worried researchers more than the number of frogs seen during the survey.

D

After the results were shared, the city moved a walking path away from the busiest pond, limited night work during breeding season and created two extra shallow pools. Scientists also warned that one unusual call is not enough to prove a new species. Evidence from behaviour, appearance and genetics must be considered together.

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