A frog with long fingers, which was last seen in 1949, was considered extinct, but recently appeared again in the forests of Burundi - a small country in eastern Africa, as reported by scientists.
Get the name of the Burundian dlinnopaltsevaya frog (Cardioglossacyaneospila), amphibian reaches a length of about 4 centimeters, has a blue-gray color with black spots. In males, there is a long, so-called "ring finger" on each foot. Scientists do not know exactly what it is used by the frogs.
David Blackburn (David Blackburn) of the California Academy of Sciences,and his colleagues found the elusive frog in December 2011 during an expedition to Burundi forest reserve. On the fifth night of your stay in the forest Blackburn heard the croaking of frogs. He considered that the sound comes close relatives dlinnopaltsevoy frog. When dative examination it turned out that it was a completely different amphibian.
Frogs have chosen to inhabit the terrain is quite intriguing, at least for geologists. Burundi is bordered by vast Congo River Basin and Great Rift Valley, which is a huge crack in the earth's crust. The frog also lives on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, the second largest freshwater lake in the world.
Newly discovered frog amphibian collection has expanded the California Academy of Sciences. Scientists will use it to study the genetic information that will help determine how long C. Cyaneospila and her cousin, Cameroonian frog, split from a common ancestor and became genetically isolated.
Blackburn and his colleagues found dozens of other amphibians in Burundi, many of whom had not met in these places. Also, scientists have found several unknown species, which are still to be identified.
"Burundi - poorly understood, so we found a lot of amphibians that have not been seen before. As soon as we show that in this area inhabited by rare species with limited habitat, we will work with local communities in order to save endangered types ", - said the researchers.
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