Leptobrachella minima (Taylor, 1962)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Anura > Family: Megophryidae > Subfamily: Leptobrachiinae > Genus: Leptobrachella > Species: Leptobrachella minima

Leptobrachium minimum Taylor, 1962, Univ. Kansas Sci. Bull., 43: 320. Holotype: EHT-HMS 34020, by original designation; now FMNH 178228 according to Marx, 1976, Fieldiana, Zool., 69: 57. Type locality: "Doi Suthep, circa 1000 m elevation[,] Chiang Mai, Chiang Mai province, Thailand".

Leptolalax (Lalos) minimus — Dubois, Grosjean, Ohler, Adler, and Zhao, 2010, Zootaxa, 2493: 67; Ohler, Wollenberg, Grosjean, Hendrix, Vences, Ziegler, and Dubois, 2011, Zootaxa, 3147: 31. 

Leptobrachella minima — Chen, Poyarkov, Suwannapoom, Lathrop, Wu, Zhou, Yuan, Jin, Chen, Liu, Nguyen, Nguyen, Duong, Eto, Nishikawa, Matsui, Orlov, Stuart, Brown, Rowley, Murphy, Wang, and Che, 2018, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 124: 162, by implication. 

Common Names

Small Litter Toad (Poyarkov, Nguyen, Popov, Geissler, Pawangkhanant, Neang, Suwannapoom, and Orlov, 2021, Russ. J. Herpetol., 28 (3A): 30). 

Small Asian Toad (Pham, Le, Pham, Nguyen, Ziegler, and Nguyen, 2016, Rev. Suisse Zool., 123: 40). 

Dwarf Litter Frog (Niyomwan, Srisom, and Pawangkhanant, 2019, Field Guide Amph. Thailand: 126).

Distribution

Northern Thailand (Chang Mai Province) and northern Laos (Bolikhamxai, Khammoua, and Xaignabouly provinces) (see comment); also reported for Dien Bien, Son La, Hoa Binh, Quang Ninh, Bac Kan, and Thanh Hoa Provinces, Vietnam (see comment); expected in adjacent Yunnan, China. 

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Laos, Thailand, Vietnam

Likely/Controversially Present: China, People's Republic of

Comment

Removed from the synonymy of Leptolalax oshanensis by Ohler, Wollenberg, Grosjean, Hendrix, Vences, Ziegler, and Dubois, 2011, Zootaxa, 3147: 31, where it had been placed by Dubois, 1981, Bull. Mens. Soc. Linn. Lyon, 50: 187-188. Nutphund, 2001, Amph. Thailand: 79, provided a brief characterization of Leptobrachium minimum, but provided a photograph of Kalophrynus interlineatus as representing this species, according to Ohler, 2003, Alytes, 21: 101. Stuart, 2005, Herpetol. Rev., 36: 474, provided Laos records. Ohler, Wollenberg, Grosjean, Hendrix, Vences, Ziegler, and Dubois, 2011, Zootaxa, 3147: 1-83, characterized the species comparatively and revealed genetic variation among the samples indicating that two species were covered by this nominal species name, form 1 is the nominate form known only from Thailand and Laos, and form 2 is found in northern Thailand. Pham, Nguyen, Hoang, and Ziegler, 2016, Herpetol. Notes, 9: 32, provided a photograph and a record for Thuong Xuan District, Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. Pham, Le, Pham, Nguyen, Ziegler, and Nguyen, 2016, Rev. Suisse Zool., 123: 40–41, provide several localities in Son La Province, Vietnam. Niyomwan, Srisom, and Pawangkhanant, 2019, Field Guide Amph. Thailand: 126–127, provided a brief account (photograph, habitat, and range) for Thailand (in Thai). Pham, Do, Ngo, Tran, Ziegler, and Nguyen, 2020, Check List, 16: 1025–1041, provided a record from Hai Ha District, Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam, on the Guangxi, China, border. Poyarkov, Nguyen, Popov, Geissler, Pawangkhanant, Neang, Suwannapoom, and Orlov, 2021, Russ. J. Herpetol., 28 (3A): 30, suggested that "the record" from Vietnam is likely misidentified, but provided no reason for this conjecture. Luong, Do, Hoang, Phan, Nguyen, and Pham, 2022, Biodiversity Data J., 10(e75595): 7, provided a record, photograph, and description of a specimen from Bac Kan Province, Vietnam. Stuart, Seateun, Sivongxay, and Phimmachak, 2025 "2024", in Wildlife Lao PDR: 25, summarized literature, taxonomy, habitat, and detailed range for Laos. 

External links:

Please note: these links will take you to external websites not affiliated with the American Museum of Natural History. We are not responsible for their content.