Post by glowtoad on Oct 14, 2020 22:38:20 GMT
A toad named after the character Gollum in the fantasy novel Lord of the Rings has joined the latest list of animals deemed at risk of extinction.
The amphibian lives not in the Misty Mountains, but on a Malaysian mountain.
The toad got its name from Gollum, also known as Sméagol, in Tolkien's trilogy because scientists saw similarities between the two.
"Smeagol from Lord of the Rings is a semi-aquatic creature," said Dr Chan Kin Onn of the University of Singapore.
"[It has] large eyes, occurs up in the mountains and has long, thin limbs. And funnily enough, his digits are also extended. These are all characters that this little stream-toad also has."
The toad, which goes by the scientific name Ansonia smeagol is classed as 'vulnerable' on the latest International Union for Conservation of Nature - IUCN Red List.
The amphibian lives not in the Misty Mountains, but on a Malaysian mountain.
The toad got its name from Gollum, also known as Sméagol, in Tolkien's trilogy because scientists saw similarities between the two.
"Smeagol from Lord of the Rings is a semi-aquatic creature," said Dr Chan Kin Onn of the University of Singapore.
"[It has] large eyes, occurs up in the mountains and has long, thin limbs. And funnily enough, his digits are also extended. These are all characters that this little stream-toad also has."
The toad, which goes by the scientific name Ansonia smeagol is classed as 'vulnerable' on the latest International Union for Conservation of Nature - IUCN Red List.
