Contributions to the herpetofauna of the Angolan Okavango- Cuando-Zambezi river drainages. Part 3: Amphibians
Author
Conradie, Werner
National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project, Wild Bird Trust, SOUTH AFRICA & Department of Nature Conservation Management, Natural Resource Science and Management Cluster, Faculty of Science, George Campus, Nelson Mandela University, George, SOUTH AFRICA & Port Elizabeth Museum, Beach Road, Humewood, Port Elizabeth 6013, SOUTH AFRICA
Author
Keates, Chad
South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB), Makhanda, SOUTH AFRICA & National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project, Wild Bird Trust, SOUTH AFRICA & Department of Nature Conservation Management, Natural Resource Science and Management Cluster, Faculty of Science, George Campus, Nelson Mandela University, George, SOUTH AFRICA
Author
Verburgt, Luke
Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, 0001, SOUTH AFRICA & Enviro-Insight CC, Unit 8 Oppidraai Office Park, Pretoria 0050, SOUTH AFRICA & National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project, Wild Bird Trust, SOUTH AFRICA
Author
Baptista, Ninda L.
Museum für Naturkunde-Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Invalidenstr. 43, 10115 Berlin, GERMANY & BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485 - 661 Vairão, PORTUGAL & Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, 4169 - 007, Porto, PORTUGAL & CIBIO / InBio, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, 4485 - 661 Vairão, PORTUGAL & Instituto Superior de Ciências da Educação da Huíla (ISCED), Rua Sarmento Rodrigues, Lubango, ANGOLA & National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project, Wild Bird Trust, SOUTH AFRICA
Author
Harvey, James
Harvey Ecological, 41 Devonshire Avenue, Howick, 3290, SOUTH AFRICA & National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project, Wild Bird Trust, SOUTH AFRICA
text
Amphibian & Reptile Conservation
2023
e 325
2023-08-04
17
1
19
56
journal article
297340
10.5281/zenodo.12761936
5e6c8fd8-74a8-4de2-8687-29b4ea71fac1
1525-9153
12761936
Hyperolius benguellensis
(Bocage, 1893)
Benguela
Reed Frog (
Fig. 12
;
Map 11
)
Material (
8 specimens
, 1 tadpole lot):
PEM
A12438–41,
INBAC
(no number x2), Cuchi River gorge, -14.59000° 16.90758°,
1,365 m
asl;
PEM
A12661,
PEM
A14172, Campsite 2 near old Cuvango Mission, -13.33451° 16.41280°,
1,356 m
asl;
PEM
A12675–6, Camp 3, Malova Village, Mipanha River, -14.09140° 16.41476°,
1,553 m
asl;
PEM
A12666, Cubango River campsite 1 below rapids, west of Fundo village, -13.04790° 16.37896°,
1,568 m
asl.
Additional specimens (1 tadpole lot):
SAIAB
209058 (18 tadpoles), Cuvango power station, entrance to canal, -14.38650° 16.28767°,
1,457 m
asl.
Description:
Small reed frog; sharp but truncated snout, with small to no anterior protrusion; pedal webbing formula:
I
(1),
II
i/e (1– 0.5),
III
(1–0.5),
IV
(1–1),
V
(0.75). Dorsum green with white dorso-lateral stripes (mostly males) or uniformly green with scattered brown spots (mostly females); ventrum transparent. Males with yellow gular disc. Single adult female measured
24.7 mm
(
PEM
A12438); adult males (n = 7) varied from 16.2–22.8 (19.7) mm (largest male:
PEM
A12440).
Habitat and natural history notes:
Found on margins of rivers and in wetlands. Restricted to the western side of the study area, associated with the Cubango River system.
Comments:
In the most recent revision of the
Hyperolius nasutus
-complex, 16 species have been recognized (Channing et al. 2013). At least four species are expected to occur in
Angola
(Channing et al. 2013;
Marques et al. 2018
;
Baptista et al. 2019
), namely
H. benguellensis
,
H. nasutus
,
H. adspersus
, and
H. dartevellei
. Two clear morphotypes exist based on the general snout shape: sharp (
benguellensis
group) and rounded (
nasutus
group). Of the sharp snouted form, we distinguished between two morphotypes in southeastern
Angola
: the ‘shark’-like profile (
H. benguellensis
,
this species account) and the acutely pointed snout, with a distinct protruding tip (
H
. cf.
inyangae
, see species account below). These identifications were confirmed by comparing 16S rRNA barcodes (W. Conradie, unpub. data) to published sequences (
Channing et al. 2012
). The remaining material is assigned to the
nasutus
group (see species account below). However, it must be noted that these little green frogs have been the subject of rigorous taxonomic debate over the years due to their cryptic nature, molecular and morphological similarity, and substantial geographic overlaps (see
Channing et al. 2012
for overview). The taxonomic status of Angolan species belonging to these groups needs to be assessed in a broad-scale phylogenetic study.