correwela's Favorites

This juvenile toad was active in full sunlight at about 10 AM, close to a building at the Carabineros de Chile checkpoint along A-317.
The interesting feature, to me, about these juvenile toads, is the dark coloration of the dorsal and ventral part of the body (pictures 1 and 2) and yellow-orange coloration of the feet (picture 3) and along the side of the body (pictures 1 and 2). This color pattern reminds me of a similar coloration in a small toad-like species, Melanophryniscus stelzneri, that live in San Luis and Córdoba Provinces, Argentina. Presumably, these bright yellows-to-red colors are warning signs to potential predators that the animal is distasteful due to skin toxins.
The other interesting thing that is shown in picture 3 is how this animal brings its legs in close to the body and remains still for some time.