Microhylidae
| Microhylidae Temporal range: Paleocene - Present,66–0 Ma |
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| Eastern narrowmouth toad (Gastrophryne carolinensis) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Suborder: | Neobatrachia |
| Family: |
Microhylidae Günther, 1858 |
| Subfamilies | |
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Asterophryinae |
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| Distribution of Microhylidae (in black) | |
Asterophryinae
Cophylinae
Dyscophinae
Melanobatrachinae
Microhylinae
Phrynomerinae
Scaphiophryninae
The Microhylidae, commonly known as narrow-mouthed frogs, are a geographically widespread family of frogs. The 584 species are in 61 genera and 11 subfamilies, which is the largest number of genera of any frog family.
A molecular phylogenetic study by van der Meijden, et. al (2007) has estimated the initial internal divergence of the Microhylidae family to have taken place about 66 millions years old, or immediately after the Cretaceous extinction event. The most recent common ancestor of the Microhylidae and their closest ranoid relatives is estimated to have lived 116 million years ago in Gondwana.
As suggested by their name, microhylids are mostly small frogs. Many species are below 1.5 cm (0.59 in) in length, although some species are as large as 9 cm (3.5 in). They can be arboreal or terrestrial, and some even live close to water. The ground-dwellers are often found under leaf litter within forests, occasionally venturing out at night to hunt. The two main shapes for the microhylids are wide bodies and narrow mouths and normal frog proportions. Those with narrow mouths generally eat termites and ants, and the others have diets typical of most frogs. Egg-laying habits are highly varied.
The microhylids of New Guinea and Australia completely bypass the tadpole stage, with direct development from egg to frog. The arboreal species can therefore lay the eggs within the trees, and never need venture to the ground. Where species do have tadpoles, these almost always lack the teeth or horny beaks typical of the tadpoles of other families.
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