Gastrophryne mazatlanensis
(Taylor, 1943)
Sonora, Mexico. August 20, 2011
Flipping a rock on the edge of a small stream revealed an ant nest, and this frog. Seemingly undismayed that I had removed the roof from its house, the little microhylid remained in place, munching on ants as I took its picture. Gastrophryne feature a fold of loose skin on the head that can be rolled down to protect the eyes from biting ants, and I suspect it works to remove ants from around the eyes as well.
Gastrophryne mazatlanensis was elevated to specific status (formerly a subspecies of G. olivacea) in 2012. The bottom frog is from a road near Yecora, on a rainy night when gastros were out on the road in numbers.
