‘Spiny' creatures get stomachs ‘flushed' to reveal their mystery diets in Vietnam

In northeastern Vietnam, researchers spent nearly a decade scouring mountain forests and nature reserves for a little-known endangered species of frog.
Quasipaa acanthophora, or the Mau Son spiny frog, was discovered in 2009 on Mau Son Mountain and has now been reported in a new location, bringing the number of known populations to three, according to an April 29 study published in Biodiversity Data Journal.
Researchers said recent fieldwork led to the discovery of a Mau Son spiny frog population in Dong Son–Ky Thuong Nature Reserve in Quang Ninh Province, about a 120-mile drive east from Hanoi.
Experts have also begun to unlock mysteries about the diet of the Mau Son spiny frog, which was previously unknown, according to the study.
Staked out along rocky streams in evergreen forests — the species' natural habitat — researchers caught 38 spiny frogs by hand and 'flushed' their stomachs to analyze the contents.
The process, which caused no harm to the frogs, revealed '446 prey items,' giving researchers insights into the types and size of prey, as well as possible differences in consumption habits between males and females and adults and young, according to the study.
Researchers found 27 different categories of prey, 21 of which were insects, in the stomachs of the Mau Son spiny frogs. Cockroaches and beetles are the most prominent or 'important' food source to the opportunistic feeders, according to the study.
Crustaceans and whip scorpions were found only in the stomachs of female frogs, while crane flies and centipedes were found only in the stomachs of males, according to researchers.
The spiny frogs are described as being 'large' and 'robust' with warty skin, 'pale copper' irises and 'immaculate white' bellies, according to the study.
Mau Son spiny frogs are listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List and endangered in Vietnam's Red Data Book, according to researchers.
The research team included Vien Hong Thi Nguyen, Anh Van Pham, Truong Quang Nguyen, Tung Thanh Tran, Thomas Ziegler and Cuong The Pham.

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