Rhinodermatinae

a subfamily of tailless amphibians of the family Brevicipitidae. There are two genera, distributed in South America. The best-known genus, Rhinoderma, has a single species—the South American frog (R. darwini). The South American frog is found in the mountains of Chile. The body length reaches 3 cm. The snout forms a soft pointed proboscis, which can be extended for respiration when the animal is in the water. The coloration is greenish or red-brown.

The male places the few large eggs deposited by the female in his mouth, from which they travel to the highly expanded vocal pouch. The hatched larvae first feed on the remains of the egg yolk and then, after their backs have fused with the walls of the father’s vocal pouch, on nutrients from the blood vessels of the pouch’s walls. When development is complete, the tailless young leave the vocal pouch and transfer to aquatic life.