Melanophryniscus montevidensis (Philippi, 1902)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Melanophryniscus montevidensis, also called Darwin's toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae and the genus Melanophryniscus found in Brazil and Uruguay. Like other amphibians in its genus, its bright colors, defensive behavior, and rapid metamorphosis make it stand out. It also has a myriad of chemical compounds on its skin that could be used in biomedical applications.
Darwin's toad is jet black with yellow patches on its back, sides, forelimbs, and ventral. It has a red spot on the ventral side of the thigh and part of the abdomen. The palms of his hands and soles of its feet are also red.
Wikipedia contributors, Melanophryniscus montevidensis; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T17:08:47.047955+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Melanophryniscus montevidensis (Philippi, 1902)
- Name authority
- (Philippi, 1902)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Amphibia
- Order
- Anura
- Family
- Bufonidae
- Genus
- Melanophryniscus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAmphibia
- orderAnura
- familyBufonidae Gray, 1825
- genusMelanophryniscus Gallardo, 1961
- speciesMelanophryniscus montevidensis (Philippi, 1902)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Melanophryniscus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Melanophryniscus atroluteus (Miranda-Ribeiro, 1920) | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus cambaraensis Braun & Braun, 1979 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus devincenzii Klappenbach, 1968 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus estebani Céspedez, 2008 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus krauczuki Baldo & Basso, 2004 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus langonei Maneyro, Naya & Baldo, 2008 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus macrogranulosus Braun, 1973 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus pachyrhynus (Miranda-Ribeiro, 1920) | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus peritus Caramaschi & Cruz, 2011 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus rubriventris (Vellard, 1947) | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus setiba Peloso, Faivovich, Grant, Gasparini & Haddad, 2012 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Melanophryniscus simplex Caramaschi & Cruz, 2002 | BufonidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Melanophryniscus stelzneri montevidensis (Philippi, 1902) (Philippi, 1902) | synonym |
| Rana tricolor Larrañaga, 2015 Larrañaga, 2015 | synonym |
| Phryniscus montevidensis Philippi, 1902 Philippi, 1902 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=661907 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3Z9LV. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.