The color of the tiny, endangered Harlequin Mantella, Mantella cowani, makes it a perfect candidate for the alternative name of "Halloween Mantella."



Once sporadically imported for the American (and other) pet trade, it has been several years since it was last available. This frog occurs in high altitude forests and seasonally in wet grasslands in eastern central Madagascar.

As is often the case with localized herp species from areas that are difficult to access, very little is know with certainty about the biology and life history of the inch-long Harlequin Mantella. It is apparently diurnal. The clicking vocalizations of this frog have been heard from shallow stream edges and damp rock crevices. The fewer than 50 eggs are laid in protected damp leaf litter and mosses but the life of the tadpoles remains unknown.

Although no longer legally collected for the pet trade, continuing deforestation and other habitat modifications seemingly remain very real threats to the long-term existence of this remarkably beautiful, Liliputian anuran.

More photos under the jump...