of the Margallah Hills National Park

Evolution of Amphibians he word '' is derived from the Ancient Greek term amphíbios which means 'both kinds of life'. Amphibians can live on These little frequent shallow Indian Cricket T marshes, flooded fields, and damp limnocharis both land and water, and primarily inhabit damp grassland near canals and ditches. ground in the most diverse parts of the world. The When disturbed, they leap into the first major groups of amphibians developed in the water and start swimming. They are Devonian period, around 370 million years ago. mostly nocturnal during the cool or Amphibians were the first vertebrates (i.e. they have very dry months but may occasionally a backbone) to develop paired limbs capable of be found in piles of decaying movement on dry land, the first to have a middle ear vegetation or under logs and rubbish. and to have a sensory organ, localized on the palate Triadobatrachus from the early Triassic period occured in the swaps of Madagascar 250 million years ago. It is the earliest prehistoric amphibian. in the mouth. They were the first in which the eyes were protected by eyelids. Today more than twenty five hundred species of amphibians are known.

All species of amphibians are dependent on outside temperature for their body heat (i.e. they are cold-blooded). They have soft skins, with a variety of glands, which keep the skin moist, produce toxic secretions to deter predators. Most species have gills in the larval stage. As adults, they breathe air through their lungs. Southeast Asian With a few exceptions, adult amphibians are predators, feeding on virtually anything or Common Asian Toad that moves that they can swallow. The diet mostly consists of small prey that does not melanostictus move too fast such as beetles, caterpillars, earthworms and spiders. Many amphibians This species usually inhabits damp sites, rarely far from water, catch their prey by flicking out an elongated tongue with a sticky tip and drawing it back frequently in hilly areas. It is mostly confined to the low northern hilly ranges in and Kashmir. This species is into the mouth before seizing the item with their jaws. Amphibian skin is permeable to nocturnal, appearing soon after sunset; during the day they water. Breathing can take place through the skin and this allows adult amphibians to hide under stones, logs, in holes and crevices among stones breathe without rising to the surface of water and to hibernate at the bottom of ponds. and ground. They are very shy, moving about with deliberate hops from place to place. They feed on a wide Dramatic declines in amphibian populations, including population crashes and mass array of terrestrial insects (, wasps, aphids, flies and their localized extinction, have lately been noted, and amphibian declines are perceived to be eggs, maggots and pupae, caterpillars, cockroaches, spiders, one of the most critical threats to global biodiversity. In comparison to Southeast scorpions, centipedes, and snails. This species is a Asia, Pakistan has low amphibian species diversity because of its prevailing arid prolific breeder, a single female laying over 1000 eggs in any environmental conditions. There are twenty one amphibian species reported from water. Eggs hatch in about four days. Pakistan. Margallah Hills National Park is home to nine of them.

Skittering Frog This species tolerates considerable organic pollution and is Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis most common in habitats modified by man. It inhabits clear rocky streams, muddy swamps, and reservoirs. Skittering Bull Frog or frogs mainly prey on aquatic insects. They also feed on tadpoles of their own species. Their usual call is “crrreek, Tiger Frog crrreek.” Adults can subsist for months in the water, Hoplobatrachus tigerinus spending much of their time floating on the surface. When alarmed, they skitter (move actively) across the surface of water before diving and hiding in the bottom of the pond. This frog always lives near water, in weed-choked ditches, Marbled Balloon Frog marshes, and tanks; often sitting on the banks under bushes; and is most common in habitats modified by man. During the monsoon season it is spread over flooded systoma lowlands. It feeds on aquatic insects, snails and small frogs from its own species.

This frog is known to be an excellent burrower and comes to the surface only during monsoon. It is a weak swimmer and usually floats in water. Moist soil is indispensable for this frog. During dry months, it retreats into the moist vicinity of nests, termites being its main food. breviceps This frog is usually seen in flat grasslands, or in dry areas It has been known to have lived for thirteen months close to large muddy streams or shallow ponds. It without food. The breeding season of this frog enters water only when breeding but may be extends from May to July, during monsoon rains. found in the grass on the banks. Beetles and The call of the male is like a bleating goat; its vocal sac crickets form its main diet. Breeding is triggered is distended so enormously that it looks like a float. by the first showers of summer monsoon.

Ornate Narrow-mouthed Frog or Frog Microhyla ornata This species lives in a wide variety of habitats, Murree Frog from very dry to very moist, but always Nanorana vicina reasonably close to water. It occurs up to 1,500 metres in the hills, and is commonly These frogs are largely aquatic, at found in small rainwater pools, ditches least during the daytime. During and small ponds, usually with floating the breeding season, the males vegetation after the monsoon rains have the thighs and throat have started. During the day, it suffused with a red color. It hides under stones, logs, heaps is endemic to Murree of vegetation, and in fissures and its surrounding and holes in ground, along areas including the the sides of streams and M a r g a l l a h H i l l s ponds. It emerges at dusk National Park. and feeds on ants and other soft-bodies insects.

Marbled Toad or Indus Valley Toad Duttaphrynus stomaticus

These bury in burrows in wet soil or sand, and remain active from March to October over most of Pakistan. Adults are often seen MARGALLAH HILLS floating in ponds and pools, and during the N A T I O N A L P A R K monsoon season they often enter houses. They are generally nocturnal, spending the day in dark, damp holes or crevices apparently with a strong attachment, as they have been found returning to the same spot on successive days after nightly

feeding forays. They are usually solitary, but in Copyright © 2013 by Himalayan Wildlife Foundation. captivity a group may rest in a jumbled pile. All rights reserved. May not be reproduced or publicly sold/distributed without the written consent of the foundation. Copies can be obtained from Himalayan Wildlife Foundation. T +92 51 2610200 Ext 317 | E [email protected] www.hwf.org.pk | www.kalinjartrails.com Artwork: Samiya Haroon, Design: Murad Yusuf