Medium-sized species with stout appearance, 23-29 mm. Head and anterior part of dorsum covered by a sharply delimited yellow/green marking, posteriorly ending more or less straight in the three known specimens. Flanks, arms, legs, and posterior part of dorsum dark brown. Hands and fingertips without blue spots. Frenal stripe present, but thin, not reaching the snout tip. Upper part of iris with light pigment. Venter with small bluish spots, throat with a light horseshoe marking. No red, orange or yellow pattern on hindlimbs (Glaw and Vences 2007).
Similar species: Mantella laevigata has a dark throat and enlarged fingertips, and lacks a frenal stripe. Mantella viridis has partly greenish flanks and hindlimbs (Glaw and Vences 2007).
Distribution and Habitat
Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Madagascar
Marojejy (Vences and Glaw 2007). It occurs between 300-700 m asl in mid-altitude rainforest (Raxworthy et al. 2008).
Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Habits: Two specimens were found along a large stony stream in primary forest. They were active during the day on the ground (Glaw and Vences 2007). Likely to reproduce by laying eggs on land, near water, and having larvae develop in the water, like other Mantella (Raxworthy et al. 2008).
Calls: Unknown (Glaw and Vences 2007).
Trends and Threats
Appears to be a rare species. It occurs within one protected area, in Parc National de Marojejy. The second locality, within the Analabe Rainforest, is not protected but is not currently being logged as it is a remote site (Raxworthy et al. 2008).
Possible reasons for amphibian decline
General habitat alteration and loss
Habitat modification from deforestation, or logging related activities
Intensified agriculture or grazing
Taken with permission from Glaw and Vences (2007).
Glaw, F., and Vences, M. (2007). Field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Madagascar. Third Edition. Vences and Glaw Verlag, Köln.
Raxworthy, C., Vences, M., Glaw, F., Andreone, and Rabibisoa, N. (2008). Mantella manery. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 22 April 2009.
Written by Miguel Vences and Frank Glaw (m.vences AT tu-bs.de), Assistant Professor and Curator of Vertebrates at the Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics in the Zoological Museum at the University of Amsterdam.
First submitted 2009-04-22
Edited by Kellie Whittaker (2009-04-28)
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