Leaping into the spotlight
They were hiding in plain sight. It took an understanding of genetics to help uncover five new species of South-east Asian frogs from a group of close to 400 museum specimens which researchers had long thought belonged to only two species. To make the discovery, scientists from Yale-NUS College and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences sequenced the DNA of frogs from collections around the world. Low De Wei showcases the five amphibians new to science.
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Low De Wei
Sylvirana malayana
Found in Malaysia and Thailand, near streams in primary forests. This is the only species among the five to possess a dark stripe extending from snout to groin, with strong demarcation between the dark (upper) and light (lower) parts of its flank.