Arabian toad | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Amphibia |
Order: | Anura |
Family: | Bufonidae |
Genus: | Sclerophrys |
Species: | S. arabica |
Binomial name | |
Sclerophrys arabica (Heyden, 1827) | |
Synonyms | |
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The Arabian toad (Sclerophrys arabica) is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to the Arabian Peninsula and is found in Oman, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
Only nine species of amphibians have been found on the Arabian Peninsula, and this toad is one of only two species found in the United Arab Emirates. [2]
The Arabian toad has a rounded head and snout, prominent eyes and small tympanic membranes. Its back is covered with small warts and it varies in colour, being grey, tan, brown or green, often with golden speckles. The male is generally smaller than the female. The long croak of the male sounds like a rusty door hinge. [2]
This species is endemic to the Arabian Peninsula. Its range includes several widely separated locations in northwestern, central and southwestern Saudi Arabia, the Farasan Islands in the Red Sea, western and southern Yemen, the United Arab Emirates and northern Oman. [2] Its altitudinal range runs from sea level to about 2,300 m (7,500 ft). It is a common species where the conditions are suitable and is found in oases, springs, irrigation ditches, watercourses, ponds and gardens. [1] In the United Arab Emirates it is often found in mountain pools and may bury itself by digging holes in damp gravel in wadis. [3]
The Arabian toad can be active at any time of day or night. It is well camouflaged and may hide in crevices, animal burrows or other concealed locations. It feeds on insects and small invertebrates, and sometimes larger toads eat small juveniles. It may consume small fish in drying-out ephemeral pools, swallowing them whole because, having no teeth it is unable to chew. This toad breeds opportunistically at any time of year in stationary or slow-moving water, depositing strings of black eggs in the water. [2]
Under adverse conditions, this toad can bury itself in the ground and aestivate, remaining dormant until rain falls or conditions improve. It has been known to aestivate for as long as three years at a time. Stimulated by changing conditions, all the toads may emerge at once and congregate in great numbers in suitable places to breed. [4] The carpet viper and Brandt's hedgehog prey on the Arabian toad and seem to be unharmed by the noxious secretions it produces. [2]
B. arabicus is a common species around suitable water bodies within its range and seems able to adapt to a range of habitat types. No particular threats are known and much of its range is well away from human habitations. The Farasan Islands are a protected area of Saudi Arabia. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed this toad's conservation status as being of "least concern". [1]
The Arabian Peninsula, or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. At 3,237,500 km2 (1,250,000 sq mi), the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world.
The Arabian Desert is a vast desert wilderness in Western Asia that occupies almost the entire Arabian Peninsula. It stretches from Yemen to the Persian Gulf and Oman to Jordan and Iraq. It occupies most of the Arabian Peninsula, with an area of 2,330,000 square kilometers (900,000 sq mi). It is the fifth largest desert in the world, and the largest in Asia. At its center is Ar-Rub' al-Khali, one of the largest continuous bodies of sand in the world. It is an extension of the Sahara Desert.
The Egyptian nightjar is a medium-small nightjar which occurs in south west Asia and north Africa and winters in tropical Africa. This is a fairly common species with a wide distribution which faces no obvious threats apart from habitat destruction, so the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern".
Blanford's fox is a small fox native to the Middle East and Central Asia. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
The Arabian leopard is a leopard subspecies native to the Arabian Peninsula. It has been listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 1996 as fewer than 200 wild individuals were estimated to be alive in 2006. The population is severely fragmented. Subpopulations are isolated and not larger than 50 mature individuals. The population is thought to decline continuously.
The Arabian gazelle(Gazella arabica) is a species of gazelle from the Arabian Peninsula. There are approximately 5,000 - 7,000 mature individuals in the wild.
Garra barreimiae, the Oman garra, is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Cyprinidae. It is found in the mountains of northern Oman and in the United Arab Emirates. Most populations inhabit wadis, streams, pools and springs, but one population which lives in a cave system, is known as Omani blind cave fish, and has lost its sight and pigmentation. The only other cave fish in the Arabian Peninsula is the Tawi Atair garra, but it has normal eyes.
Sclerophrys blanfordii is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in northeastern Ethiopia, Somaliland, Djibouti, and Eritrea. The specific name blanfordii honours William Thomas Blandford, a British geologist and zoologist. Common names Blanford's toad and Ethiopia toad have been coined for it, the latter might specifically refer to the now-synonymized Bufo sibiliai.
The Dhofar toad or Oman toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to the Arabian Peninsula and is found in Oman, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
The eastern leopard toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to South Africa. Its natural habitats are temperate shrubland, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland, rural gardens, and urban areas. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Sclerophrys tihamica is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to the Arabian Peninsula and occurs along the Red Sea coastline of Saudi Arabia and Yemen. It is sometimes known as Balletto's toad. Reports of Bufo pentoni from the Arabian Peninsula refer to this species.
Lichtenstein's sandgrouse is a species of bird in the Pteroclidae family, which is named after Martin Lichtenstein. They are nomadic, mostly nocturnal birds, which drink before dawn and after dusk.
The Arabian cobra is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to the Arabian Peninsula.
The wildlife of Yemen is substantial and varied. Yemen is a large country in the southern half of the Arabian Peninsula with several geographic regions, each with a diversity of plants and animals adapted to their own particular habitats. As well as high mountains and deserts, there is a coastal plain and long coastline. The country has links with Europe and Asia, and the continent of Africa is close at hand. The flora and fauna have influences from all these regions and the country also serves as a staging post for migratory birds.
The wildlife of Saudi Arabia is substantial and varied. Saudi Arabia is a very large country forming the biggest part of the Arabian Peninsula. It has several geographic regions, each with a diversity of plants and animals adapted to their own particular habitats. The country has several extensive mountain ranges, deserts, highlands, steppes, hills, wadis, volcanic areas, lakes and over 1300 islands. The Saudi Arabian coastline has a combined length of 2640 km and consists of the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea to the west while a shorter eastern coastline can be found along the Persian Gulf.
The wildlife of the United Arab Emirates is the flora and fauna of the country on the eastern side of the Arabian Peninsula and the southern end of the Persian Gulf. The country offers a variety of habitats for wildlife including the coast, offshore islands, mangrove areas, mudflats, salt pans, sand and gravel plains, sand dunes, mountain slopes, wadis and rocky summits. Because the terrain is so varied, it supports a greater number of species of plants and animals than might have been expected in this relatively small country.
The wildlife of Oman is the flora and fauna of this country in the southeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula, with coasts on the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. The climate is hot and dry, apart from the southeastern coast, and the country offers a variety of habitats for wildlife including mountains, valleys, deserts, coastal plains and sea coasts.
The Southwestern Arabian foothills savanna, also known as the Southwestern Arabian Escarpment shrublands and woodlands, is a desert and xeric shrubland ecoregion of the southern Arabian Peninsula, covering portions of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Oman.
Arabian toad-headed agama is a species of agamid lizard found in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Iran, and Jordan.
The Arabian green bee-eater is a species of bird in the family Meropidae. It is found throughout arid regions of the Arabian Peninsula from Saudi Arabia south to Yemen and east to Oman and the United Arab Emirates, and has expanded its range north to the Levant over the past few decades.
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