The Herpetological Journal

Authors: Vien Hong Thi Nguyen, Cuong The Pham, Truong Quang Nguyen, Chung Van Hoang & Anh Van Pham

Abstract: The Boulenger's spiny frog Quasipaa boulengeri Günther, 1889, is known from only Vietnam and China. It was listed as Vulnerable (VU) in the IUCN Red List and as Endangered (EN) in Vietnam Red Data Book. Knowledge about natural history of this species is virtually lacking. In this study, we analysed the diet of Q. boulengeri based on stomach contents of frogs collected from Cao Bang and Ha Giang Provinces, northern Vietnam. In addition, we also compared food contents between sexes and seasons. We found a total of 892 prey items belonging to 30 prey categories, including 11 orders of insects and four prey categories of invertebrates. There were no positive correlations between the body size of frogs and the minimum prey volume, while there were correlations between the body size of frogs and maximum prey item volume, mean prey item volume and total prey volume. The most important prey groups of Q. boulengeri were Blattidae (IRI = 40.58%), followed by Acrididae (9.27%), other Coleoptera (7.41%) and Tettigoniidae (4.95%). There was an overlap of 67.39% in the diet between males and females. Despite differences in diet compositions between the sexes, Blattidae, beetles and Acrididae make up a majority of prey for all of them. We also compared diet composition between seasons, with a higher number of prey categories recorded in the rainy season (28) than the dry season (15).

Keywords: amphibians, Cao Bang Province, Ha Giang Province, insects, prey items, stomach contents