Afrobatrachia

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Afrobatrachia
Leptopelis uluguruensis femelle enceinte.jpg
Leptopelis uluguruensis
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Clade: Ranoidea
Clade: Afrobatrachia
Frost et al., 2006
Families

Afrobatrachia is clade of frogs in the suborder Neobatrachia, all of which are restricted to Africa, including some species in Madagascar and the Seychelles. It is the sister group to the clade Natatanura, which contains all other members of Ranoidea aside from Microhylidae [1] [2] [3]

The diversity of the clade represents more than half the frog diversity found in Africa. Some can grow up to 66 mm in length. Species of the clade in lowland and montane forests display ecologies such as arboreality and fossoriality. The frogs show direct development, the most terrestrial of which is shown the family Brevicipitidae. [2]

Families

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adaptive radiation</span> A process in which organisms diversify rapidly from an ancestral species

In evolutionary biology, adaptive radiation is a process in which organisms diversify rapidly from an ancestral species into a multitude of new forms, particularly when a change in the environment makes new resources available, alters biotic interactions or opens new environmental niches. Starting with a single ancestor, this process results in the speciation and phenotypic adaptation of an array of species exhibiting different morphological and physiological traits. The prototypical example of adaptive radiation is finch speciation on the Galapagos, but examples are known from around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">True frog</span> Family of frogs

True frogs is the common name for the frog family Ranidae. They have the widest distribution of any frog family. They are abundant throughout most of the world, occurring on all continents except Antarctica. The true frogs are present in North America, northern South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. The Asian range extends across the East Indies to New Guinea and a single species, the Australian wood frog, has spread into the far north of Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caecilian</span> Order of amphibians

Caecilians are a group of limbless, vermiform (worm-shaped) or serpentine (snake-shaped) amphibians. They mostly live hidden in soil or in streambeds, and this cryptic lifestyle renders caecilians among the least familiar amphibians. Modern caecilians live in the tropics of South and Central America, Africa, and southern Asia. Caecilians feed on small subterranean creatures such as earthworms. The body is cylindrical and often darkly coloured, and the skull is bullet-shaped and strongly built. Caecilian heads have several unique adaptations, including fused cranial and jaw bones, a two-part system of jaw muscles, and a chemosensory tentacle in front of the eye. The skin is slimy and bears ringlike markings or grooves, which may contain tiny scales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neobatrachia</span> Suborder of amphibians

The Neobatrachia are a suborder of the Anura, the order of frogs and toads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poison dart frog</span> Family of amphibians

Poison dart frog is the common name of a group of frogs in the family Dendrobatidae which are native to tropical Central and South America. These species are diurnal and often have brightly colored bodies. This bright coloration is correlated with the toxicity of the species, making them aposematic. Some species of the family Dendrobatidae exhibit extremely bright coloration along with high toxicity, while others have cryptic coloration with minimal to no amount of observed toxicity. The species that have great toxicity derive this feature from their diet of ants, mites and termites. However, other species that exhibit cryptic coloration, and low to no amounts of toxicity, eat a much larger variety of prey. Many species of this family are threatened due to human infrastructure encroaching on their habitats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhacophoridae</span> Family of amphibians

The Rhacophoridae are a family of frogs that occur in tropical sub-Saharan Africa, South India and Sri Lanka, Japan, northeastern India to eastern China and Taiwan, south through the Philippines and Greater Sundas, and Sulawesi. They are commonly known as shrub frogs, or more ambiguously as "moss frogs" or "bush frogs". Some Rhacophoridae are called "tree frogs". Among the most spectacular members of this family are numerous "flying frogs".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthroleptidae</span> Family of amphibians

The Arthroleptidae are a family of frogs found in sub-Saharan Africa. This group includes African treefrogs in the genus Leptopelis along with the terrestrial breeding squeakers Arthroleptis, and several genera restricted to the Guinean forests of central and west Africa, such as the hairy frog (Trichobatrachus).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">True toad</span> Family of amphibians

A true toad is any member of the family Bufonidae, in the order Anura. This is the only family of anurans in which all members are known as toads, although some may be called frogs. The bufonids now comprise more than 35 genera, Bufo being the best known.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cophylinae</span> Subfamily of amphibians

Cophylinae is a subfamily of microhylid frogs endemic to Madagascar. It has over 100 species in eight genera. Members of this subfamily range from minute to fairly large, and they are highly ecologically diverse. DNA barcode research has revealed a significant taxonomic gap in this subfamily, and an estimated 70+ candidate species were identified. Many of these have subsequently been described, as well as numerous new discoveries.

<i>Amnirana</i> Genus of amphibians

Amnirana is a genus of frogs in the family Ranidae, "true frogs". The genus is primarily found in Sub-Saharan Africa, but one species occurs in parts of southern and southeastern Asia. Some of the African species are widespread but contain undescribed cryptic diversity. Most species have a white upper lip, and the genus is sometimes known as the white-lipped frogs.

In phylogenetics, basal is the direction of the base of a rooted phylogenetic tree or cladogram. The term may be more strictly applied only to nodes adjacent to the root, or more loosely applied to nodes regarded as being close to the root. Note that extant taxa that lie on branches connecting directly to the root are not more closely related to the root than any other extant taxa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hyloidea</span> Superfamily of amphibians

Hyloidea is a superfamily of frogs. Hyloidea accounts for 54% of all living anuran species. The superfamily Hyloidea branched off from its closest relative, the Australobatrachia, during the mid-Cretaceous. The fossil evidence found during the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event could not determine the effects upon the frogs, due to the lack of fossils. Increased forestation erupted after this extinction, possibly leading to more arboreal adaptations of these anurans to be best suited for this habitat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brevicipitidae</span> Family of amphibians

Brevicipitidae or rain frogs is a small family of frogs found in eastern and southern Africa. As of 2020 contains 37 species in 5 genera. Formerly included as subfamily in Microhylidae, phylogenetic research has indicated the brevicipitine frogs should be considered as a family with Hemisotidae as the most closely related sister taxon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holozoa</span> Group of organisms

Holozoa is a group of organisms that includes animals and their closest single-celled relatives, but excludes fungi. Holozoa is also an old name for the tunicate genus Distaplia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apusomonadida</span> Order of micro-organisms

The Apusomonadida are a group of protozoan zooflagellates that glide on surfaces, and mostly consume prokaryotes. They are of particular evolutionary interest because they appear to be the sister group to the Opisthokonts, the clade that includes both animals and fungi. Together with the Breviatea, these form the Obazoa clade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pelodryadinae</span> Subfamily of amphibians

Pelodryadinae, also known as Australian treefrogs, is a subfamily of frogs found in the region of Australia and New Guinea, and have also been introduced to New Caledonia, Guam, New Zealand, and Vanuatu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phyllomedusinae</span> Subfamily of amphibians

Phyllomedusinae is a subfamily of hylid tree frogs found in the Neotropics commonly called leaf frogs. Formerly, they were often considered as their own family, Phyllomedusidae.

Breviceps ombelanonga, the Angolan rain frog, is a species of frog in the family Brevicipitidae, first described in 2020. The frog is endemic to Angola.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myobatrachoidea</span>

Myobatrachoidea is a superfamily of frogs. It contains two families, both of which are found in Australia, New Guinea, and the Aru Islands. Some sources group these two families into a single family Myobatrachidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sooglossoidea</span>

Sooglossoidea is a superfamily of frogs. It contains only two highly divergent families consisting of three genera with two species each, one family being found in southwestern India and the other in the Seychelles.

References

  1. R., Frost, Darrel (2006). The amphibian tree of life. American Museum of Natural History. OCLC   891485867.
  2. 1 2 Portik, Daniel M.; Blackburn, David C. (September 2016). "The evolution of reproductive diversity in Afrobatrachia: A phylogenetic comparative analysis of an extensive radiation of African frogs". Evolution. 70 (9): 2017–2032. doi:10.1111/evo.12997. ISSN   0014-3820. PMC   5129497 . PMID   27402182.
  3. Feng, Yan-Jie; Blackburn, David C.; Liang, Dan; Hillis, David M.; Wake, David B.; Cannatella, David C.; Zhang, Peng (2017-07-18). "Phylogenomics reveals rapid, simultaneous diversification of three major clades of Gondwanan frogs at the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 114 (29): E5864–E5870. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1704632114 . ISSN   0027-8424. PMC   5530686 . PMID   28673970.