Huia (frog)
| Huia | |
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Javan Torrent Frog, Huia masonii This species is a member of the Sumatran Torrent Frog group |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Subphylum: | Vertebrata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Subclass: | Lissamphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Suborder: | Neobatrachia |
| Superfamily: | Ranoidea |
| Family: | Ranidae |
| Genus: |
Huia Yang, 1991 |
| Species | |
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Huia is a group of true frogs found in Southeast Asia. Many are commonly known as "torrent frogs" after their favorite habitat - small rapid-flowing mountain and hill streams -, but this name is used for many similar-looking frogs regardless of whether they are closely related. A seemingly less ambiguous name is huia frogs; however, the supposed genus seems actually to be a polyphyletic "wastebin taxon" and might contain only a fraction of the dozens of species placed here by some authors.
Several species of Amolops and Odorrana are highly convergent with Huia. O. absita for example is highly similar in habitus to the completely allopatric H. masonii. Though the latter might not be a member of Huia in the strictest sense, it is at least a very close relative.
In another incidence of convergent evolution yielding adaptation to habitat, the tadpoles of Amolops, Huia, Meristogenys as well as Rana sauteri have a raised and usually well-developed sucker on their belly. This is useful in keeping in place in rocky torrents, where these frogs grow up. But as Odorrana and Staurois from comparable habitat prove, this sucker is by no means a necessity and other means of adaptation to torrent habitat exist.
Up to some 55 species are sometimes placed in Huia, including some originally placed into the genera Odorrana and Eburana, which formed a paraphyletic cluster; indeed these two genera are sometimes treated as junior synonyms of Huia. The Long-snout Torrent Frog on the other hand – formerly Huia nasica – is now in Odorrana. But many of the moves to Huia seem to be premature and it is better to treat Odorrana as valid, in a more comprehensive way and including Eburana, than expanding Huia.
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Wikipedia