Mertensophryne

Mertensophryne is a genus of true toads (family Bufonidae).[1][2] They are found in eastern and southern Democratic Republic of Congo to Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, southeastern Zimbabwe, and adjacent Mozambique. Their common names include snouted frogs, Chirinda forest toads, and forest toads.[1] The genus is named for Robert Mertens, German zoologist and herpetologist.[3]

Mertensophryne
Mertensophryne micranotis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Bufonidae
Genus: Mertensophryne
Tihen, 1960
Type species
Bufo (micranotis) rondoensis
Loveridge, 1942
Species

14 species (see text)

Synonyms[1]

Stephopaedes Channing, 1979 "1978"

Taxonomy

Mertensophryne, as currently understood, consist of the former "Bufo" taitanus group and the genera Mertensophryne (as formerly defined) and Stephopaedes.[4] The latter is monophyletic and still recognized as a subgenus. The closest relatives of Mertensophryne remain uncertain but probably include Poyntonophrynus, Vandijkophrynus, and Capensibufo.[1]

Description

Mertensophryne lack tympanum and columella. They frequently show digit reduction.[4] They are relatively small frogs; among the ten species studied by Liedtke and colleagues, the maximum female snout–vent length varied between 24 and 46 mm (0.9 and 1.8 in). Eggs are relatively large, 1.8–2.5 mm (0.1–0.1 in) in diameter, and few in number (maximum 35–188).[5]

Species

There are 14 recognized species:[1][2]

Binomial Name and AuthorCommon Name
Mertensophryne anotis (Boulenger, 1907)Mashonaland toad
Mertensophryne howelli (Poynton and Clarke, 1999)Mrora forest toad
Mertensophryne lindneri (Mertens, 1955)Dar es Salaam toad
Mertensophryne lonnbergi (Andersson, 1911)Lonberg's toad
Mertensophryne loveridgei (Poynton, 1991)Mahenge toad
Mertensophryne melanopleura (Schmidt and Inger, 1959)Kankunde toad
Mertensophryne micranotis (Loveridge, 1925)Loveridges snouted toad
Mertensophryne mocquardi (Angel, 1924)Mocquards toad
Mertensophryne nairobiensis (Loveridge, 1932)Nairobi toad
Mertensophryne nyikae (Loveridge, 1953)Nyika dwarf toad
Mertensophryne schmidti Grandison, 1972Schmidt's snouted frog
Mertensophryne taitana (Peters, 1878)Black-chested dwarf toad
Mertensophryne usambarae (Poynton and Clarke, 1999)Usambara forest toad
Mertensophryne uzunguensis (Loveridge, 1932)Uzungwe toad

References

  1. Frost, Darrel R. (2017). "Mertensophryne Tihen, 1960". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  2. "Bufonidae". AmphibiaWeb. University of California, Berkeley. 2018. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  3. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael & Grayson, Michael (2013). The Eponym Dictionary of Amphibians. Pelagic Publishing. p. 141. ISBN 978-1-907807-42-8.
  4. Frost, D. R.; Grant, T.; Faivovich, J. N.; Bain, R. H.; Haas, A.; Haddad, C. F. B.; De Sá, R. O.; Channing, A.; Wilkinson, M.; Donnellan, S. C.; Raxworthy, C. J.; Campbell, J. A.; Blotto, B. L.; Moler, P.; Drewes, R. C.; Nussbaum, R. A.; Lynch, J. D.; Green, D. M. & Wheeler, W. C. (2006). "The amphibian tree of life". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 297: 1–291. doi:10.1206/0003-0090(2006)297[0001:TATOL]2.0.CO;2. hdl:2246/5781.
  5. Liedtke, H. Christoph; Müller, Hendrik; Hafner, Julian; Nagel, Peter & Loader, Simon P. (2014). "Interspecific patterns for egg and clutch sizes of African Bufonidae (Amphibia: Anura)". Zoologischer Anzeiger. 253 (4): 309–315. doi:10.1016/j.jcz.2014.02.003.
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