Golden bell frog
Litoria aurea (Lesson, 1830)
Hylidae
(Alecto Facsimile Edition - Plate 26)

BAU28

$650.00

28. Southern Bell Frog. Litoria raniformis (Keferstein, 1867) [W,P&M]
339 x 510 mm
It is thought the specimen Bauer painted was caught on Kangaroo Island in South Australia on 22
March 1802. The discovery of the frog was somewhat overshadowed by the enormous numbers of
kangaroos present on the then un-named island – so Flinders called it “Kanguroo Island”! They
were the first Europeans to set foot on the island and the kangaroos, unused to humans, were
unafraid and easy prey.
Flinders recorded in his diary for 22 March that thirty-one kangaroos were killed that day and
provided enough protein to feed the ship’s company for several days.
Today, the Southern Bell Frog is as an endangered species and is only found in New South
Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.
W&M : 322-3, 340; W,P&M : 70-71; Pizzey : 27