Dark brown irregular spots on a beige background give the tadpole a mottled appearance. The mottling becomes more blotchy and shows greater contrast on the tail. There is significant variation in the pattern, which is most pronounced in late-stage tadpoles. Iridophores are abundant over the body and muscular tail and can form light patches on the fins. The lateral abdomen is covered by a sheath of silver iridocytes; the medial abdominal skin is semitransparent; the gut is covered by deeper layers of pigmentation and not clearly visible. The oral disc and abdominal sucker are unpigmented; gills and heart are invisible. Specialized epithelium (friction areas) along the inner side of the sucker rim is visible as light brown areas. Tail fins may bear some diffuse dark and light blotches of pigmentation (melanocytes and iridocytes) along their margins. In advanced stages, melanocytes along the blood vessels accentuate the myosepta and can create a reticulate pattern on the tail fins.