212 REPTILES AND BATRACHIANS 



Beagle^ is characterized by a long and triangular snout, 

 ending in a fleshy lobe. The pupil is horizontal. The 

 tympanum is hidden. The fingers and toes, the tips of 

 which are not dilated, are incompletely webbed. The skin 

 is smooth. The manner in which this frog takes care of its 

 offspring is most extraordinary, the eggs being nursed by 

 the male, who retains them in its vocal sac, the latter 

 extending over almost the entire ventral surface. The 

 larvae do not develop gills, and the tail, which is at no 

 part of its development very large, disappears before the 

 young leave the pouch. 



Phryniscus, of Tropical America, a genus in which the 

 snout is only feebly elongate, is represented by numerous 

 species. The pupil is horizontal. The tympanum is 

 hidden. The fingers are provided with a mere rudiment 

 of a web, while the toes vary much in the extent of the 

 webbing. 



The South American Dwarf Toad, P. nigricans, is a 

 minute creature, attaining a length of barely an inch. 

 The upper parts, which are covered with small warts, are 

 uniform black, or black with a few light yellow spots ; the 

 under-surfaces are black, with large crimson and yellow or 

 orange markings. According to Budgett, both sexes utter 

 a call note during the breeding season which consists of two 

 clear, musical " rings," followed by a long, descending 

 " trill," very much like that of our Greenfinch. The eggs, 

 which are laid separately, are deposited in temporary pools, 

 and are washed down by heavy rains to deeper waters. 

 The development is remarkably rapid, a number of eggs, 

 the segmentation of which began at lo a.m., hatching at 

 7 a.m. the following morning. 



A number of specimens which are living, at the time of 



