Gunther's Marsupial Frog
Gastrotheca guentheri
Gastrotheca guentheri is a species of frog in the family Hemiphractidae. It is found in the Andes of Colombia and Ecuador.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC) via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gastrotheca_guentheri
Taxonomy & Classification
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Amphibia
Order
Anura
Family
Hemiphractidae
Genus
Gastrotheca
Gunther's Marsupial Frog belongs to the family Hemiphractidae, order Anura, within the Amphibia class.
Species Profile
Gastrotheca guentheri is a species of frog in the family Hemiphractidae. It is found in the Andes of Colombia and Ecuador. Gastrotheca guentheri is the only known frog with true teeth in both of its jaws, as indicated by the name of the genus it originally typified, Amphignathodon, described by George Albert Boulenger in 1882.
Gunther's Marsupial Frog faces severe threats primarily from habitat destruction due to deforestation, agricultural expansion, and urban development in its limited montane cloud forest range in Ecuador. Climate change poses an additional significant threat by altering the temperature and humidity conditions essential for this species' survival and reproduction.
Key Facts
Habitat & Distribution
Natural habitats of Gastrotheca guentheri are tropical moist forests. These frogs are nocturnal and live on vegetation, including arboreal bromeliads. This species is declining in abundance. One cause of the declines is habitat loss, but the species has also declined within suitable habitat in Ecuador, possibly because of climate change or chytridiomycosis.
Threats
IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered
Gunther's Marsupial Frog faces severe threats primarily from habitat destruction due to deforestation, agricultural expansion, and urban development in its limited montane cloud forest range in Ecuador. Climate change poses an additional significant threat by altering the temperature and humidity conditions essential for this species' survival and reproduction.
Agricultural expansion
Climate change
Habitat loss and fragmentation
Small population size and restricted range
Urban development
Community Sightings
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Sources & Attribution
How to Cite
IUCN: IUCN (2025). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2025-1. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-1.RLTS
GBIF: GBIF.org (2025). GBIF Home Page. Available at: https://www.gbif.org
This page: SpeciesRadar (2025). Gunther's Marsupial Frog (Gastrotheca guentheri). SpeciesRadar: Intelligence for Earth's Biodiversity. Available at: https://speciesradar.org/species/gunthers-marsupial-frog