Phrynobatrachus

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Phrynobatrachus
A male and a female of Phrynobatrachus bibita.jpg
A male and a female of Phrynobatrachus bibita
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Clade: Ranoidea
Family: Phrynobatrachidae
Laurent, 1941
Genus: Phrynobatrachus
Günther, 1862
Species

See text

Synonyms
  • PhrynodonParker, 1935

Phrynobatrachus is a genus of Sub-Saharan frogs that form the monogeneric family Phrynobatrachidae. Their common name is puddle frogs, dwarf puddle frogs, African puddle frogs, or African river frogs. [1] [2] [3] [4] The common name, puddle frog, refers to the fact that many species breed in temporary waterbodies such as puddles. [5]

Contents

Phrynobatrachus are among the most common amphibians in Africa. They are typically small (mostly less than 30 mm (1.2 in) [5] ), fast-moving frogs. They occupy a variety of habitats from dry savannas to rainforests. Most species deposit many small eggs as a surface clutch in standing or slowly moving water and have exotrophic tadpoles. [4]

Taxonomy

Phrynobatrachidae has earlier been considered as a subfamily of Ranidae, but its recognition as a family is now well-established. [1] [2] [3] [4] It is probably most closely related to Petropedetidae and Pyxicephalidae [1] or Ptychadenidae. [4]

This large genus may be further divided into three major clades. These clades could be treated as different genera, but this arrangement is not yet in use. [1]

Species

There are currently 96 species in this genus: [6]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Ptychadena</i> Genus of amphibians

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<i>Leptopelis</i> Genus of amphibians

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<i>Afrixalus</i> Genus of amphibians

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<i>Hyperolius</i> Genus of frogs

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Arthroleptides is a small genus of frogs in the family Petropedetidae. Their common name is rocky river frogs. They are found in the mountains of East Africa. They have been considered to belong to Petropedetes, which after exclusion of Arthroleptides is restricted to Central Africa.

Phrynobatrachus latifrons, the Ahl's river frog or savanna puddle frog, is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is found from Senegal in West Africa east to northern Cameroon and eastern Chad in western Central Africa. The IUCN Red List includes the following West African countries : Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.

Phrynobatrachus bullans is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is found in northern and central inland Tanzania, southern Ethiopia, and southwestern Kenya. Common name bubbling puddle frog has been coined for it.

Phrynobatrachus graueri is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is found in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Uganda, and western Kenya. The specific name graueri honours Rudolf Grauer, Austrian explorer and zoologist who collected the holotype. Common names Rugege river frog and Grauer's puddle frog have been coined for it.

Phrynobatrachus keniensis is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is found widely in the highlands of Kenya. It is also recorded from Mount Meru in northern Tanzania, but this might represent a different species. Common names Kenya River frog and upland puddle frog have been coined for it.

Phrynobatrachus kinangopensis is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is endemic to the Kenyan Highlands east of the Great Rift Valley. Both the scientific name and its common names, Kinangop river frog and Kinangop puddle frog, refer to its type locality, Mount Kinangop.

Phrynobatrachus pakenhami is a frog species in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is endemic to Pemba Island off Tanzania. It is similar to Phrynobatrachus acridoides, its sister species, but the two species differ in ecology and male advertisement call. On the other hand, the recently described, supposed diminutive species P. nigripes was simply based on juveniles and subadults of P. pakenhami.

Phrynobatrachus steindachneri is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is found in western Cameroon and eastern Nigeria. The specific name steindachneri honours Franz Steindachner, an Austrian herpetologist and ichthyologist. This species is also known as Steindachner's puddle frog and Steindachner's river frog.

Phrynobatrachus versicolor is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is found in northwestern Burundi, western Rwanda, southwestern Uganda, and adjacent eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Common names Rwanda river frog and green puddle frog have been coined for it. The specific name versicolor, derived from the Latin versare and color, and refers to its variable dorsal colouration.

Phrynobatrachus werneri is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is only known with certainty from western Cameroon, although there is a putative record from Chappal Waddi in Nigeria, close to the border of Cameroon; the earlier record from the Obudu Plateau in Nigeria is now assigned to Phrynobatrachus schioetzi described as a new species in 2011. The status of Phrynobatrachus manengoubensis from Mount Manengouba remains unclear, with some questioning its distinctness from Phrynobatrachus werneri. Common name Werner's river frog has been coined for this species.

Phrynobatrachus njiomock is a species of frogs in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is endemic to Cameroon and is only known from Mount Oku where it occurs near Lake Oku. It has not been observed after 2010 and might already be extinct. The specific name njiomock means "eleventh" in Oku language and refers to the name "Phrynobatrachus sp. 11" that Jean-Louis Amiet used in 1978 to refer to a specimen collected near Lake Oku. Common name Lake Oku puddle frog has been proposed for this species.

<i>Phrynobatrachus jimzimkusi</i> Species of amphibian

Phrynobatrachus jimzimkusi is a species of frogs in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is found in submontane and montane regions within the Cameroon volcanic line as well as the adjacent Obudu Plateau in the southeast of Nigeria. It is named after James (Jim) Zimkus by his wife, Breda Zimkus, the first author of the species description. Common name Jim Zimkus' puddle frog has been proposed for this species.

Phrynobatrachus chukuchuku, the spiny puddle frog, is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. They are endemic to Cameroon, and considered Critically Endangered.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Frost, Darrel R. (2014). "Phrynobatrachidae Laurent, 1941". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Phrynobatrachidae". AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb. 2014. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  3. 1 2 Blackburn, D. C.; Wake, D. B. (2011). "Class Amphibia Gray, 1825. In: Zhang, Z.-Q. (Ed.) Animal biodiversity: An outline of higher-level classification and survey of taxonomic richness" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3148: 39–55. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3148.1.8.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Vitt, Laurie J.; Caldwell, Janalee P. (2014). Herpetology: An Introductory Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles (4th ed.). Academic Press. p. 507.
  5. 1 2 Zimkus, B. "Phrynobatrachus Günther, 1862". African Amphibians Lifedesk. Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  6. Frost, Darrel R. (2022). "Phrynobatrachus Günther, 1862". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 28 July 2022.