Arthroleptis is a genus of frogs in the family Arthroleptidae found in tropical sub-Saharan Africa.[1][2] Their common names include screeching frogs, sometimes simply squeakers.[1]
| Arthroleptis | |
|---|---|
| |
| Arthroleptis wahlbergii | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Arthroleptidae |
| Subfamily: | Arthroleptinae |
| Genus: | Arthroleptis Smith, 1849 |
| Type species | |
| Arthroleptis wahlbergii Smith, 1849
| |
| Diversity | |
| About 47 species (see text) | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Schoutedenella De Witte, 1921 | |
Description
editThese species are terrestrial breeding, with direct development (metamorphosis to froglets occurs within the egg). Many species in this genus are small, or very small, frogs with a minimum adult size of 15 mm (0.59 in) snout-vent length.[3] The largest species (Arthroleptis nikeae and Arthroleptis tanneri) reach body lengths around 55 mm (2.2 in). It was hypothesized that small species evolved from larger ones, but in fact the opposite seems to be case.[2]
Arthroleptis species are terrestrial leaf-litter frogs that feed on a range of terrestrial arthropods, such as ants and termites.[2]
Species
editForty-seven[1] to 49[4] species are known; this list follows the Amphibian Species of the World:[1]
| Common name | Binomial name |
|---|---|
| Foulassi screeching frog | Arthroleptis adelphus Perret, 1966 |
| Rugegewald screeching frog | Arthroleptis adolfifriederici Nieden, 1911 |
| Ahl's squeaker | Arthroleptis affinis Ahl, 1939 |
| Arthroleptis anotis Loader, Poynton, Lawson, Blackburn, and Menegon, 2011 | |
| Freetown long-fingered frog | Arthroleptis aureoli (Schiøtz, 1964) |
| Arthroleptis bioko Blackburn, 2010 | |
| Tumbo-Insel screeching frog | Arthroleptis bivittatus Müller, 1885 |
| Togo screeching frog | Arthroleptis brevipes Ahl, 1924 |
| Carqueja's squeaker | Arthroleptis carquejai Ferreira, 1906 |
| Guinea screeching frog | Arthroleptis crusculum Angel, 1950 |
| Arthroleptis fichika Blackburn, 2009 | |
| Arthroleptis formosus Rödel, Kouamé, Doumbia, and Sandberger, 2011 | |
| Ruo River screeching frog | Arthroleptis francei Loveridge, 1953 |
| Itombwe screeching frog | Arthroleptis hematogaster (Laurent, 1954) |
| Arthroleptis kidogo Blackburn, 2009 | |
| Krokosua squeaking frog, Giant squeaker frog |
Arthroleptis krokosua Ernst, Agyei, and Rödel, 2008 |
| Arthroleptis kutogundua Blackburn, 2012 | |
| Lameer's squeaker | Arthroleptis lameerei De Witte, 1921 |
| Lonnberg's squeaker | Arthroleptis langeri Rödel, Doumbia, Johnson, and Hillers, 2009 |
| Loveridge's screeching frog | Arthroleptis loveridgei De Witte, 1933 |
| Mosso screeching frog | Arthroleptis mossoensis (Laurent, 1954) |
| Arthroleptis nguruensis Poynton, Menegon, and Loader, 2009 | |
| Nike's squeaker | Arthroleptis nikeae Poynton, 2003 |
| Mount Nimba screeching frog | Arthroleptis nimbaensis Angel, 1950 |
| Arthroleptis nlonakoensis (Plath, Herrmann, and Böhme, 2006) | |
| Arthroleptis palava Blackburn, Gvoždík, and Leaché, 2010 | |
| Arthroleptis perreti Blackburn, Gonwouo, Ernst, and Rödel, 2009 | |
| Lomami screeching frog | Arthroleptis phrynoides (Laurent, 1976) |
| Mottled squeaker | Arthroleptis poecilonotus Peters, 1863 |
| Kivu screeching frog | Arthroleptis pyrrhoscelis Laurent, 1952 |
| Reiche's squeaker | Arthroleptis reichei Nieden, 1911 |
| Schubotz's squeaker | Arthroleptis schubotzi Nieden, 1911 |
| Tanganyika screeching frog | Arthroleptis spinalis Boulenger, 1919 |
| Common squeaker | Arthroleptis stenodactylus Pfeffer, 1893 |
| Kambai squeaker | Arthroleptis stridens (Pickersgill, 2007) |
| Forest screeching frog | Arthroleptis sylvaticus (Laurent, 1954) |
| Striped screeching frog | Arthroleptis taeniatus Boulenger, 1906 |
| Tanzania screeching frog | Arthroleptis tanneri Grandison, 1983 |
| Cave squeaker | Arthroleptis troglodytes Poynton, 1963 |
| Rainforest screeching frog | Arthroleptis tuberosus Andersson, 1905 |
| Buea screeching frog | Arthroleptis variabilis Matschie, 1893 |
| Mwana screeching frog | Arthroleptis vercammeni (Laurent, 1954) |
| Arthroleptis wageri FitzSimons, 1930 | |
| Wahlberg's humus Frog | Arthroleptis wahlbergii Smith, 1849 |
| Plain squeaker | Arthroleptis xenochirus Boulenger, 1905 |
| Dwarf squeaker | Arthroleptis xenodactyloides Hewitt, 1933 |
| Eastern squeaker | Arthroleptis xenodactylus Boulenger, 1909 |
| Zimmer's screeching frog | Arthroleptis zimmeri (Ahl, 1925) |
References
edit- ^ a b c d Frost, Darrel R. (2015). "Arthroleptis Smith, 1849". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
- ^ a b c Blackburn, D. (2008). "Biogeography and evolution of body size and life history of African frogs: Phylogeny of squeakers (Arthroleptis) and long-fingered frogs (Cardioglossa) estimated from mitochondrial data". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 49 (3): 806–826. Bibcode:2008MolPE..49..806B. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2008.08.015. PMID 18804169.
- ^ Blackburn, David C. (March 2011). "Family Arthroleptidae". AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. 2016. Berkeley, California. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
- ^ "Arthroleptidae". AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. Berkeley, California: AmphibiaWeb. 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2016.