Phrynobatrachus bequaerti

Phrynobatrachus bequaerti is a species of frog in the family Phrynobatrachidae. It is found in the mountains of north-western Burundi, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and western Rwanda.[1][2][4] The specific name bequaerti honours Joseph Charles Bequaert, a Belgian botanist, entomologist, and malacologist[5][4] and who collected the holotype from Mount Vissoke.[3] Common name Vissoke river frog has been coined for this species.[1][2][4][5]

Phrynobatrachus bequaerti
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Phrynobatrachidae
Genus: Phrynobatrachus
Species:
P. bequaerti
Binomial name
Phrynobatrachus bequaerti
(Barbour and Loveridge, 1929)
Synonyms[2]
  • Arthroleptis bequaerti Barbour and Loveridge, 1929[3]
  • Pararthroleptis bequaerti (Barbour and Loveridge, 1929)

Description

Specimens in the type series measure 12–25 mm (0.5–1.0 in) in snout–vent length; the largest specimens are all females. The snout is rounded. The tympanum is very distinct. The fingers have no webbing whereas the toes are about one-third webbed; the tips of the digits are slightly dilated.[3] Skin has many small but prominent spiny tubercles.[6] The dorsum is uniform brown, except for chocolate-brown vertebral stripe present in about half of individuals. The lower parts vary from almost immaculate white to having few drown spots to dusky mottling or vermiculation.[3][4]

Habitat and conservation

Phrynobatrachus bequaerti lives in montane forests, grasslands, and wetlands at elevations of 2,400–3,000 m (7,900–9,800 ft) above sea level. Breeding presumably takes place in swamps. It seems to be common in suitable habitat, although populations appear to be declining, and only a single specimen was found from the Nyungwe Forest National Park during surveys in 2010–2011. The species is suffering from habitat loss and degradation caused by expanding agriculture, grazing of livestock, timber extraction, and expanding human settlements. It is recorded from the Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of Congo) and the Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda).[1]

References
  1. IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2016). "Phrynobatrachus bequaerti". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T56243A18387109. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T58097A16942096.en.{{cite iucn}}: error: |doi= / |page= mismatch (help)
  2. Frost, Darrel R. (2018). "Phrynobatrachus bequaerti (Barbour and Loveridge, 1929)". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  3. Barbour, T. & Loveridge, A. (1929). "A new frog of the genus Arthroleptis from the Belgian Congo". Proceedings of the New England Zoölogical Club. 11: 25–26.
  4. Zimkus, Breda (2014). "Phrynobatrachus bequaerti Loveridge, 1941". African Amphibians. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  5. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael & Grayson, Michael (2013). The Eponym Dictionary of Amphibians. Pelagic Publishing. p. 21. ISBN 978-1-907807-42-8.
  6. Grandison, A. G. C. & Howell, K. M. (1983). "A new forest species of Phrynobatrachus (Anura: Ranidae) from Morogoro Region, Tanzania". Amphibia-Reptilia. 4 (2): 117–124. doi:10.1163/156853883X00030.
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