About Lysapsus limellum Cope, 1862
For Lysapsus limellum Cope, 1862, females have a snout-vent length ranging from 16.2 to 24.8 mm, while males have a smaller snout-vent length of 15.2 to 21.0 mm. This species can display a wide range of colors, from pale green to dark brown-green, and its eyes are typically golden. Individual frogs may have distinct patterns, but no single pattern occurs across all members of the species. It is distributed across northern Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Its natural habitats include moist savanna, subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland, rivers, swamps, freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, and pastureland. It is locally affected by habitat loss. In its life cycle, fully developed tadpoles of L. limellum can reach a total length of 40 mm including tail and body, with a body length of 11 mm. Mature tadpoles may have a black tip on their tail, which is thought to encourage predators to attack the tail rather than the tadpole’s body. Aquatic insects prey on L. limellum tadpoles, while fish and large invertebrates prey on fully grown adult L. limellum. L. limellum does not have a fixed breeding season, and breeds continuously year-round. Males call from the tops of floating vegetation throughout the day. They are more active during the day but call less often, while they are less active at night and call more frequently. Males produce two distinct calls: one is likely an advertisement call, and the other is a social call. Females lay egg clutches that contain between 10 and 182 eggs.
