Sooglossidae

Seychelles frogs
Nasikabatrachus sahyadrensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Anura
Suborder:	Neobatrachia
Family:	Sooglossidae Noble, 1931
Distribution of Sooglossidae (in black)

The Seychelles frogs (Sooglossidae) are a family of frogs found on the Seychelles Islands and India. Until recently, this family was believed to include the genera Nesomantis and Sooglossus, but following a major revision of amphibians in 2006, the genus Nesomantis was named a junior synonym of Sooglossus; conversely, the recently discovered purple frog, which was initially assigned to a distinct monotypic family (Nasikabatrachidae), is now included in the Sooglossidae.

All of the species are relatively small terrestrial frogs, about 4 cm (1.6 in) in length, hiding under fallen leaves or in rock crevices. They are unusual for the neobatrachials, in that they undertake inguinal amplexus, a primitive version of amplexus. Except for N. sahyadrensis, they lay their eggs on moist ground, rather than in water. Several species lack tadpoles, with the eggs hatching directly into froglets. The tadpoles of S. sechellensis are carried, abnormally, on the backs of the female frogs until metamorphosis.

There is no fossil record for the family. Ancestors diverged when the Seychelles Islands split from India about 100 million years ago.

The family was first described in 1931 by Gladwyn Kingsley Noble (1894–1940).

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