Scaphiophryne

Scaphiophryne is a genus of microhylid frogs endemic to Madagascar.[1] Some of the species are strikingly marked, while others are highly cryptic. They are rather plump and generally found on the ground. Several species in the genus are threatened because of habitat loss and overcollection for the international pet trade.

Scaphiophryne
Scaphiophryne gottlebei
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Microhylidae
Subfamily: Scaphiophryninae
Genus: Scaphiophryne
Boulenger, 1882
Type species
Scaphiophryne marmorata
Boulenger, 1882
Diversity
9 species
Synonyms
  • Pseudohemisus Mocquard, 1895

Behavior

Species within the genus are robust burrowing frogs, and they have an explosive breeding behavior.[2] This type of behavior is typically seen for species living within temporary and seasonal habitats, which is the case in Madagascar.[3]

Tadpoles

Tadpoles are intermediate in morphology between those of ranids and microhylids. They have rows of oral papillae, but not keratinized teeth or horny beaks.

The unique Scaphiophryne larval morphology allows for filter-feeding and the ability to use the papillae to wipe particles from substrate and churn particles from the bottom of the water source of residence.[4]

The tadpole morphology allows for distinguishing from the Pseudohemisus subgenus.[2]

Phylogeny details

The two subgenera, Scaphiophryne and Pseudohemisus, are monophyletic based on molecular analysis. The species within the Scaphiophryne subgenera are lineages that have been confirmed to be evolutionarily independent. This is based on analysis of mitochondrial and nuclear genes, where mitochondrial divergence was low, nuclear divergence was distinct, and nuclear heterozygosity was found to be high. Hybridization between species was not found, which has been previously hypothesized to happen.[2]

Species
Binomial name and author[1][5]Common name
Scaphiophryne boribory Vences, Raxworthy, Nussbaum & Glaw, 2003
Scaphiophryne brevis (Grandidier, 1872)Brown rain frog
Scaphiophryne calcarata Mocquard, 1895Mocquard's rain frog
Scaphiophryne gottlebei Busse & Böhme, 1992Red rain frog
Scaphiophryne madagascariensis Boulenger, 1882Madagascar rain rog, green rain frog
Scaphiophryne marmorata (Boulenger, 1882)Marbled rain frog
Scaphiophryne matsoko Raselimanana, Raxworthy, Andreone, Glaw & Vences, 2014
Scaphiophryne menabensis Glos, Glaw, and Vences, 2005
Scaphiophryne spinosa Steindachner, 1882

References
  1. Frost, Darrel R. (2016). "Scaphiophryne Boulenger, 1882". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  2. Scherz, Mark D.; Schmidt, Luca; Crottini, Angelica; Miralles, Aurélien; Rakotoarison, Andolalao; Raselimanana, Achille P.; Köhler, Jörn; Glaw, Frank; Vences, Miguel (2021-03-02). "Into the Chamber of Horrors: A proposal for the resolution of nomenclatural chaos in the Scaphiophryne calcarata complex (Anura: Microhylidae), with a new species-level phylogenetic hypothesis for Scaphiophryninae". Zootaxa. 4938 (4): 392–420. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4938.4.2. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 33756965. S2CID 232337253.
  3. CROTTINI, A; CHIARI, Y; MERCURIO, V; MEYER, A; VENCES, M; ANDREONE, F (2008-12-20). "Into the canyons: The phylogeography of the Malagasy frogs Mantella expectata and Scaphiophryne gottlebei in the arid Isalo Massif, and its significance for conservation (Amphibia: Mantellidae and Microhylidae)". Organisms Diversity & Evolution. 8 (5): 368–377. doi:10.1016/j.ode.2008.08.001. ISSN 1439-6092.
  4. GROSJEAN, STÉPHANE; VENCES, MIGUEL (2009-01-23). "The tadpole of the toadlet Scaphiophryne marmorata from Madagascar". Zootaxa. 1986 (1): 67–68. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1986.1.3. ISSN 1175-5334.
  5. "Microhylidae". AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb. 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016.


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