Raorchestes signatus (Boulenger, 1882)
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.
Raorchestes signatus, frog from india
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Open encyclopedia reference
Raorchestes signatus is a species of frog in the family Rhacophoridae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats, India. This arboreal frog has been observed in montane evergreen forests, shola forests, patches of forest, and occasionally towns, grasslands, and tea plantations. This frog has been observed between 1780 and 2465 meters above sea level. Like other frogs in Raorchestes, this frog breeds through direct development with no free-swimming tadpole stage. Scientists have observed some deformed individuals and speculate that it could be caused by overexposure to ultraviolet light. The IUCN classifies this frog as vulnerable to extinction because of its smallish range and because of ongoing habitat degradation. It suffers from deforestation associated with logging and agriculture. The frog also suffers from exposure to pollution, fertilizers, and herbicides, some of which prevent the frog from reproducing. Scientists cite climate change as another threat to this species. The Nilgiri Hills are warmer than previously, which has exacerbated encroachment by invasive species, such as eucalyptus and acacia trees. Climate change has also altered the way the water sits underground.
Wikipedia contributors, Raorchestes signatus; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T18:44:04.336201+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Raorchestes signatus (Boulenger, 1882)
- Name authority
- (Boulenger, 1882)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Amphibia
- Order
- Anura
- Family
- Rhacophoridae
- Genus
- Raorchestes
- 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
- familyRhacophoridae Hoffman, 1932
- subfamilyRhacophorinae Hoffman, 1932
- genusRaorchestes Biju, Shouche, Dubois, Dutta & Bossuyt, 2010
- speciesRaorchestes signatus (Boulenger, 1882)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Raorchestes. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Raorchestes agasthyaensis Zachariah, Dinesh, Kunhikrishnan, Das, Raju, Radhakrishnan, Palot & Kalesh, 2011 | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes akroparallagi (Biju & Bossuyt, 2009) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes archeos Vijayakumar, Dinesh, Prabhu & Shanker, 2014 | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes beddomii (Günther, 1876) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes bobingeri (Biju & Bossuyt, 2005) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes bombayensis (Annandale, 1919) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes chalazodes (Günther, 1876) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes chotta (Biju & Bossuyt, 2009) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes chromasynchysi (Biju & Bossuyt, 2009) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes dubois (Biju & Bossuyt, 2006) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes shillongensis (Pillai & Chanda, 1973) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raorchestes sushili (Biju & Bossuyt, 2009) | RhacophoridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Kirtixalus signatus (Boulenger, 1882) (Boulenger, 1882) | synonym |
| Rhacophorus signatus (Boulenger, 1882) (Boulenger, 1882) | synonym |
| Ixalus signatus Boulenger, 1882 Boulenger, 1882 | synonym |
| Philautus signatus (Boulenger, 1882) (Boulenger, 1882) | synonym |
| Pseudophilautus signatus (Boulenger, 1882) (Boulenger, 1882) | 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=1102221 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.
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:4RJB3. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.