Leiopelma is a genus of New Zealand primitive frogs, belonging to the suborder Archaeobatrachia. It is the only genus in the monotypic family Leiopelmatidae. The leiopelmatids' relatively basal form indicates they have an ancient lineage. While some taxonomists have suggested combining the North American frogs of the genus Ascaphus in the family Ascaphidae with the New Zealand frogs of the genus Leiopelma in the family Leiopelmatidae, the current consensus is that these two groups constitute two separate families. The four extant species of Leiopelmatidae are only found in New Zealand.
Bombinatoridae is a family of toads found in Eurasia. Species of the family have flattened bodies and some are highly toxic.
Archaeobatrachia is a suborder of the order Anura containing various primitive frogs and toads. As the name suggests, these are the most primitive frogs. Many of the species show certain physiological characteristics which are not present in other frogs and toads, thus giving rise to this group. They are largely found in Eurasia, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Borneo, and are characteristically small. In addition, the family Ascaphidae is found in the Pacific Northwest and northern Rocky Mountains of the United States, and is only represented by two species. The taxon is considered paraphyletic.
The Mesobatrachia is a paraphyletic group of relatively primitive frogs. At the end of 2016, it contained 3 superfamilies, 6 families, 16 genera, and 244 species. Recognized as a group in 1993, the name is contrasted with the primitive Archaeobatrachia and the more diverse and advanced Neobatrachia.
Caeciliidae is the family of common caecilians. They are found in Central and South America. Like other caecilians, they superficially resemble worms or snakes.
The Pipidae are a family of primitive, tongueless frogs. The 41 species in the family Pipidae are found in tropical South America and sub-Saharan Africa.
Midwife toads are a genus (Alytes) of frogs in the family Alytidae, and are found in most of Europe and northwestern Africa. Characteristic of these toad-like frogs is their parental care; the males carry a string of fertilised eggs on their backs, hence the name "midwife". The female expels a strand of eggs, which the male fertilizes externally. He then wraps them around his legs to protect them from predators in the water. When they are ready to hatch, the male wades into shallow water, where he allows the tadpoles to leap out of their eggs. Five separate species of midwife toads are found across western Europe, northern Africa, and Majorca.
The European spadefoot toads are a family of frogs, the Pelobatidae, with only one extant genus Pelobates, containing six species. They are native to Europe, the Mediterranean, northwestern Africa, and western Asia.
Discoglossus is a genus of frogs in the family Alytidae found in southern Europe and northwestern Africa.
The Majorcan midwife toad is a frog in the family Alytidae. It is endemic to the Balearic Island of Majorca in the Mediterranean Sea. An example of Lazarus taxon, the species was first described from fossil remains in 1977, but living animals were discovered in 1979.
The Iberian midwife toad or brown midwife toad, in Portuguese sapo-parteiro-ibérico, is a species of frog in the family Alytidae found in Portugal and western Spain. It is typically found in open habitats such as meadows and open oak forests. Habitat loss is one of the threats to its survival.
The Betic midwife toad or Sapo Partero Bético is a species of frog in the family Alytidae. It is endemic to mountainous in south eastern Spain. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, pastureland, ponds, and aquaculture ponds. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Alytes maurus is a species of frog in the family Alytidae . It is endemic to Morocco. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rivers, freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, rocky areas, and rural gardens. Phenomena such as habitat fragmentation, water pollution, climate change, and the introduction of chytrid fungus into ecosystems all pose threats to the well-being of these organisms.
The common midwife toad is a species of midwife frog in the family Alytidae. It is found in Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Like other members of its genus (Alytes), the male toad carries the eggs around entwined on his back and thighs until they are ready to hatch.
Liaobatrachus is a genus of prehistoric frog, the first fossil specimen of which was recovered from the Yixian Formation of Liaoning Province, China. It was the first Mesozoic era frog ever found in China. The species Callobatrachus sanyanensis,Mesophryne beipiaoensis and Yizhoubatrachusmacilentus were classified as species of Liaobatrachus in one study, but this has been rejected by other authors. The genus has been considered a nomen dubium by some authors due to the poor preservation of the holotype specimen. Fossils were found in the Sihetun locality of the western part of Liaoning province, in the lower part of the Yixian Formation, and date to approximately 124.6 Ma. Another specimen was collected near Heitizigou, 25 kilometres (16 mi) south of Beipiao. The specimen has a snout–vent length of 69 millimetres (2.7 in). Liaobatrachus is considered to be the most basal member of Discoglossidae based on phylogenetic analysis.
Enneabatrachus is an extinct genus of prehistoric frogs known from the late Jurassic Morrison Formation. It is represented by a single species, E. hechti, whose remains have been recovered from stratigraphic zone 5. One specimen has been recovered from Quarry 9 of Como Bluff in Wyoming and another specimen was later reported from Dinosaur National Monument. A small discoglossid frog whose name means "nine frog" after the quarry in which it was discovered. The Como Bluff specimen was an ilium only a few millimeters long. E. hechti's live weight would have only been a few grams.
Latonia is a genus of frogs in the family Alytidae. It contains only one extant species, the Hula painted frog which is endemic to Israel and was originally classified in the genus Discoglossus, though several fossil species are known from the Paleogene and Neogene periods in Europe.
