Teeny tiny orange toadlet found in Brazil

abdulmanannet77@gmail.comDecember 13, 2025

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Teeny tiny orange toadlet found in Brazil

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A new species of pumpkin toad was recently discovered in the mountains of southern Brazil. Bracycephalus lulai measures just over a centimeter (just 0.39 inch) long and the size of a pencil tip. This is a completely new species of frog, detailed in a study published this week in the journal PLOS One.

“This new species is unique because of a combination of many characteristics,” says Marcos R. Bornschein, a biologist and co-author of the study at the Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) in São Paulo, Brazil. Popular science. “But it is distinguished by its orange coloring and the particularities of its advertising cry, notably the presence of four pulses per note.”

a little orange frog — The newly described pumpkin toad Brachycephalus lulai was discovered in the mountain forests of the Serra do Quiriri in southern Brazil and named in honor of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Photo: Luiz Fernando Ribeiro. *Image: Luiz Fernando Ribeiro*.

In fact, it was this unique advertising call (when animals send out some kind of sound to find a mother or announce their presence) that led Bornschein and the team to this discovery. They used several tools and techniques, including CT scans and DNA analysis, to ensure that this little orange frog was distinct from its cousins in the genus. Bracycephalus. There are 22 known Bracycephalus species, and Bracycephalus lulai is most closely related to two species that live in the Serra do Quiriri mountain range in southern Brazil. Its species name lulai pays tribute to Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

These tiny amphibians have bright orange bodies with green and brown freckles. Males measure 8.9 and 11.3 millimeters and females between 11.7 and 13.4 millimeters. According to the team, they are among the smallest four-legged animals on the planet. Fortunately, these tiny frogs are well protected in their habitat, where they live among fallen leaves.

“The new species is found in very unspoiled forests that are very difficult to access, which means that it is not threatened with extinction,” says Bornschein. “It’s one of the rare Brachycephalic species that are not threatened, which is very reassuring for us.

15 species of frogs varying in color from dark brown to green and yellow to orange — Divergent color variation of *Brachycephalic* species. *Image: Bornschein et al., 2025,* PLOS One.

Even though their status is not threatened, the team still calls for immediate conservation efforts to protect this frog and its relatives. Amphibians are among the most threatened group of animals due to habitat loss and the greater effects of climate change.

For Bornschein, this discovery highlights the incredible biodiversity of Brazil’s Atlantic Forest. He discovered the first Brachycephalic species as a student in southern Brazil in 1988. Since then, 22 species of this genus have been found in the region.

“That’s about one new species every year and a half,” says Bornschein. “It is a great privilege to see how far science has progressed from a modest initial discovery, but we should not assume that all the discoveries have already been made. I believe that as many as eight to ten new species of these remarkable toads could yet be described in southern Brazil in the next 10 to 15 years.”