vs Coastal Rocket Frog

Clitocybe barbularum compared with Allobates bromelicola

Key Differences

• is Data Deficient while Coastal Rocket Frog is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank		Coastal Rocket Frog
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Amphibia (Amphibians)
Order	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)	Anura (Frogs & Toads)
Family	Tricholomataceae	Aromobatidae
Genus	Clitocybe	Allobates
Species	Clitocybe barbularum	Allobates bromelicola

Conservation Status

DD — Data Deficient

Coastal Rocket Frog

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute		Coastal Rocket Frog
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

Coastal Rocket Frog

Habitat

Typically found in freshwater habitats, moist forests, and wetlands.

Range

Found in Venezuela. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Clitocybe barbularum is a small agaric fungus in the family Tricholomataceae occurring in Northern European temperate and boreal habitats, primarily documented from Scandinavian countries. It grows in grassy areas, woodland clearings, forest margins, and occasionally on disturbed ground, fruiting in late summer through autumn. The fruiting bodies are relatively small and inconspicuous with the characteristic Clitocybe form: a depressed to shallowly funnel-shaped cap, often whitish to pale greyish or buff, with crowded, decurrent gills and a slender stipe. The specific epithet barbularum suggests an association with particular microhabitats or substrates. As a saprotrophic fungus, C. barbularum plays a role in decomposing plant litter and returning nutrients to the soil ecosystem. The broader Clitocybe genus contains both edible and mildly toxic species, and smaller pale species are approached cautiously by foragers. This species reflects the high diversity of macrofungi in Scandinavian landscapes, where boreal and mixed forest systems support exceptional fungal biodiversity.

Coastal Rocket Frog

Coastal rocket frog (Allobates bromelicola) is a small terrestrial frog in the family Allophrynidae (formerly placed in Dendrobatidae), endemic to coastal lowland forests of Venezuela. Despite its placement near poison dart frogs, Allobates species are non-toxic. This species inhabits the humid leaf litter and bromeliads of coastal Venezuelan forests, where adults care for egg clutches and transport tadpoles to small water bodies including bromeliad phytotelmata. The genus Allobates is widespread across Amazonian and coastal South American forests, characterised by vocal males, ground-level activity, and close parental care. Coastal rocket frog is assessed as Vulnerable by the IUCN, primarily due to restricted range, habitat loss from deforestation for agriculture, livestock grazing, and urban expansion along Venezuela's coast. Climate change poses an additional threat through altered precipitation patterns affecting its bromeliad microhabitats. The species' specific association with bromeliads makes it particularly sensitive to vegetation structure loss. As with many narrowly endemic amphibians, ex-situ conservation programmes and improved habitat protection within its range are considered important management priorities.