Nile Delta toad

Last updated

Nile Delta toad
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Bufonidae
Genus: Amietophrynus
Species:
A. kassasii
Binomial name
Amietophrynus kassasii
(Baha El Din, 1993)
Synonyms

Bufo kassassiiBaha El Din, 1993

The Nile Delta toad or Damietta toad (Amietophrynus kassasii) is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. [2] It is endemic to Egypt, where it is found from the Nile Delta to as far south as Luxor. Its natural habitats are swamps, freshwater marshes, arable land, urban areas, seasonally flooded agricultural land and canals and ditches.

Contents

Taxonomy

Between 1909 and 1912, several specimens of a small toad species were collected near Alexandria and were sent to the British Museum, where they were identified as Bufo vittatus (now Amietophrynus vittatus ). No further specimens were found. In 1991, a new species of toad was discovered by Baha el Din near Damietta in the Nile Delta which differed in several particulars from B. vittatus, which is otherwise only known from the vicinity of Lake Victoria, and the original identification was called into question. The new species was described in 1993 as Bufo kassassii, [3] and has since been transferred to the genus Amietophrynus becoming Amietophrynus kassasii. [2]

Description

The Nile Delta toad is a small species, with females growing to a snout-to-vent length of 38 mm (1.5 in) and males to 34 mm (1.3 in). The upper surface is a greenish-grey colour with dark blotches between the eyes, on the shoulders and hips, and usually a thin white stripe along the spine. The underparts are white, sometimes with dark specks, and the hips can have dark red patches. [4] It has a long snout which is slender when viewed from the side, large distinct tympani (eardrums) and indistinct oval paratoid glands. The skin of the back is somewhat granular or may bear spiny warts, and that on the underside is slightly granular. The first finger of the hand is shorter than the second, most individuals have a red patch on the thigh, and males in breeding condition have an orange vocal sac. These and certain other characteristics distinguish this species from A. vittatus and from all other toads found in Egypt. [3]

Distribution and habitat

The Nile Delta toad was originally found in the Nile Delta in Egypt. It is a small, nocturnal aquatic species and is seldom seen, although its presence in an area may be known from the distinctive call made by the male. It occurs in swamps, rice fields and clumps of floating vegetation and has spread further upstream as reeds have become established along the margins of the River Nile and the canals associated with it. It is now present in Cairo and as far south as Luxor, where it is said to be abundant. [4]

Status

The Nile Delta toad has a total range of less than 20,000 square kilometres (7,700 sq mi), and although it is familiar in dense populations, it is rarely seen. But it has adapted to inhabit rice fields and cultivated land as well as its natural swampy habitat. It is present in several protected areas and faces no particular threats, so the IUCN has listed it as being of "least concern". [1] [4]

Related Research Articles

Sclerophrys taiensis is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is known from the Taï National Park in southwestern Ivory Coast and from the Gola Forest in southeastern Sierra Leone; it is likely that its range extends into the adjacent Liberia. Common name Tai toad has been proposed for it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guttural toad</span> Species of amphibian

The African common toad or guttural toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Réunion, Somalia, South Africa, Ethiopia, Eswatini, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, dry savanna, moist savanna, temperate shrubland, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, subtropical or tropical moist shrubland, subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland, subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland, subtropical or tropical high-altitude grassland, intermittent rivers, freshwater lakes, intermittent freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, arable land, pastureland, rural gardens, urban areas, heavily degraded former forest, ponds, and canals and ditches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Japanese common toad</span> Species of amphibian

The Japanese common toad, Japanese warty toad or Japanese toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to Japan. Its natural habitats are subarctic forests, temperate forests, temperate shrubland, swamps, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, arable land, rural gardens, urban areas, ponds, and irrigated land. Amplexus is the mating behaviour involved in the Japanese common toad during the breeding season.

<i>Rhinella jimi</i> Species of amphibian

Rhinella jimi is a species of toads in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to northeastern Brazil and known between Bujaru in northeastern Pará and Maranhão in the north, south to Bahia and Vitória, Espírito Santo. Prior to its description in 2002, it was confused with Rhinella schneideri. The specific name jimi honors Jorge Jim, a Brazilian herpetologist. Common name Jimi's toad has been coined for it.

Sclerophrys kerinyagae is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in central Ethiopia, Kenya, northern Tanzania, and eastern Uganda. Common names Keith's toad and Kerinyaga toad have been coined for it.

<i>Xanthophryne koynayensis</i> Species of amphibian

Xanthophryne koynayensis is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats of India where it is known from Koyna in the Maharashtra state. Formerly included in the genus Bufo it has been since made the type species for the genus Xanthophryne and is a sister species of Xanthophryne tigerina.

<i>Incilius leucomyos</i> Species of amphibian

Incilius leucomyos is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It was described in 2000 and is endemic to the Atlantic versant of the north-central Honduras.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berber toad</span> Species of amphibian

The Berber toad, also known as Mauritanian toad, Moroccan toad, pantherine toad or Moorish toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae, which is found in north-western Africa, with an introduced population in southern Spain.

Werner's toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in northwestern Guyana and eastern Venezuela at elevations of 500–1,350 m (1,640–4,430 ft) asl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western leopard toad</span> Species of amphibian

The western leopard toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. The species is endemic to the low-lying areas of the Cape Peninsula, the Cape Flats and the Agulhas flats of the Western Cape, South Africa.

Poyntonophrynus parkeri is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in central Tanzania and in southwestern Kenya, from the Usangu Plain in the south northward to the southern Great Rift Valley, Kenya. It is a poorly known species, however, and its distribution might be broader.

<i>Rhinella proboscidea</i> Species of amphibian

Rhinella proboscidea is a species of small South American toad in the family Bufonidae, common in the Amazon rainforest. It is the only species known to practice reproductive necrophilia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raucous toad</span> Species of amphibian

The raucous toad, also known as Ranger's toad, is a species of toad from Southern Africa.

Sclerophrys reesi, also known as Merara toad or Rees' toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to southern Tanzania and is only known from the Kihansi–Ulanga River floodplain from elevations of 200–500 m (660–1,640 ft) above sea level. It is named after Allen Rees, a principal game warden for the Tanzanian Wildlife Department who collected the type series.

<i>Sclerophrys regularis</i> Species of amphibian

Sclerophrys regularis, commonly known as the African common toad, square-marked toad, African toad, Egyptian toad, African bouncing toad and Reuss's toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found widely in the Subsaharan Africa, with its range extending to the oases in Algeria and Libya as well as to northern Nilotic Egypt. Specifically, it is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and Uganda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African giant toad</span> Species of amphibian

The African giant toad, Congo toad, or Cameroon toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria, possibly Liberia, and possibly Sierra Leone. The toad's natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, plantations, and heavily degraded former forest. While it is a "least concern" species, it is threatened by habitat loss.

Sclerophrys vittata, also known as Degen's toad, banded toad, or Lake Victoria toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to Uganda, where it is only known from Lira south to Entebbe and the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. This species may possibly be found in Kenya and its range may even extend into Egypt, but the records from northern Egypt are generally regarded as belonging to S. kassasii.

The subdesert toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found in Algeria, Cameroon, Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guinea, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Western Sahara, possibly Angola, possibly Benin, possibly Burkina Faso, possibly Central African Republic, possibly Democratic Republic of the Congo, possibly Guinea-Bissau, and possibly Nigeria. Its natural habitats are dry savanna, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland, intermittent rivers, intermittent freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, hot deserts, and arable land. Its conservation status is assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being of "least concern".

The Qattara gecko is a species of lizard in the family Phyllodactylidae.

<i>Bufo eichwaldi</i> Species of amphibian

Bufo eichwaldi, commonly known as Eichwald's toad or the Talysh toad, is a species of true toads in the family Bufonidae. It was first described by Litvinchuk, Borkin, Skorinov and Rosanov in 2008 and is found in the Talysh and Elburz Mountains in Azerbaijan and parts of northern Iran. It was previously considered to be a subspecies of the Caucasian toad.

References

  1. 1 2 Mills Tandy; Sherif Baha El Din (2004). "Amietophrynus kassasii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2004. Retrieved 2014-09-09.
  2. 1 2 Frost, Darrel R. (2014). "Amietophrynus kassasii (Baha El Din, 1993)". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  3. 1 2 Baha el Din; Sherif M. (1993). "A new species of toad (Anura, Bufonidae) from Egypt". The Journal of the Herpetological Association of Africa. 42 (1): 24–27. doi:10.1080/04416651.1993.9650367.
  4. 1 2 3 Taha Jabbar (2009-02-24). "Amietophrynus kassasii". AmphibiaWeb. Retrieved 2014-09-09.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.