📸 PhotoPhoto: Bufo_periglenes1.jpg : Charles H. Smith vergrößert von Aglarech derivative work Purpy Pupple ( talk ) · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons Source
Golden Toad
Incilius periglenes (Golden Toad · オレンジヒキガエル)
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 The female maximum length of 56 mm is slightly longer than two Korean 500-won coins (26.5 mm in diameter) lined up side by side (53 mm) (Comparison).
- 💡 Now vanished, this toad became an iconic species that strengthened the scientific community's resolve to uncover why amphibians are declining worldwide (ADW).
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The Golden Toad is a toad that lived in the wet montane forests of northern Costa Rica and is assessed as Extinct (EX, 2020) by the IUCN.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
An amphibian with extreme sexual dimorphism, males are vivid orange while females are black with yellow-edged scarlet blotches. Body length is 42–56 mm in females and 39–48 mm in males, and the difference between sexes becomes apparent only in adulthood.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
During the rainy season from April to June, huge numbers gathered at small temporary forest pools for explosive breeding, where males outnumbered females 8:1 and competed fiercely. Successful matings produced 200–400 eggs, while its diet and behavior remained largely unknown.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
No direct record connecting this species to Korea has been found.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List EX (2020) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/3172/54357699
- • IUCN Red List category EX — latest assessment at iucnredlist.org
- • catalogueoflife.org — 3PLD3
- • iucnredlist.org — 54357699
- • wikidata.org — Q320632
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Bufo periglenes2.jpg
- • animaldiversity.org — Incilius periglenes
- • bok.or.kr — contents.do
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Jose Carlos Arenas-Monroy · CC0 1.0 (Congeneric silhouette — Incilius valliceps)
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.