Tadpole description and oral morphology of Upland tree frog Polypedates braueri from Mizoram, Northeast India

The structure of oral apparatus and the morphology of anuran tadpoles are important for species identification. The amount of data on different aspects of biodiversity, including life history traits, has been poorly studied. With the complexity in the life cycle of anurans, our understanding in this group has been mostly lopsided, with much emphasis given on the adult forms, further begging the need to study anuran larval characters. The present study shows that tadpoles of Polypedates braueri have an elongated broadly ovoid body, special oral characteristics where mouth positioned anteroventral and a small white patch visible on the tip of snout. They are nektonic, having high tail fin and the tail musculature accounting for 52% of height of tail. The keratodont jaw starts developing at stage 25. Labial papillae and beak disappearing by stage 42. The lower jaw sheath has ‘V’ shaped and upper jaw sheath has ‘M’ shaped arch with finely serrated edge, black in colour. Polypedates braueri show different labial tooth row formula (LTRF) at different Gosner stages of their development. The LTRF at Gosner stage 25 is 3(2–3)/3; between stage 26–34 are 4(2–4)/3 or 4(2–4)/3(1); and between 35 and 41 LTRF changes to 5(2–5)/3, 5(2–5)/3(1) or 4(2–4)/3. Keywords: mouthparts, anura, LTRF, larvae, Rhacophoridae