Phrynobatrachus cf. parvulus (Boulenger, 1905)

Bittencourt-Silva Keywords., Gabriela B., 2019, A herpetological survey of western Zambia, Amphibian & Reptile Conservation (e 181) 13 (2), pp. 1-28 : 8-9

Phrynobatrachus cf. parvulus (Boulenger, 1905)

Small Puddle Frog

Material. HILLWOOD FARM: BMNH 2018.5873–78; LUKWAKWA: BMNH 2018.5889 ( Fig. 5A); NKWAJI: BMNH 2018.5882 (juvenile), BMNH 2018.5879–80, BMNH 2018.5883–88. Comments: All specimens were found during the day in dambo. Males have a dark throat ( BMNH 2018.5882, BMNH 2018.5886–87). While the specimens of P. mababiensis listed below have the venter immaculate (creamy), these specimens have the venter white with dark speckles. Additionally, these specimens show a more well-defined band on the thigh (which runs from knee to knee) and, in most specimens, a light line runs along the tibia-fibula and thigh (parallel to the band) and joins a vertebral line above the vent (see Fig. 6A). According to Du Preez and Carruthers (2017), the presence of the latter feature distinguishes P. parvulus from P. mababiensis . However, this character is present on both species and therefore cannot be used to separate them (see Poynton and Broadley 1985a. Pietersen et al. (2017) report P. parvulus for Ngonye Falls, approximately 25 km from Sioma Ngwesi NP, but unfortunately there is no voucher specimen. Poynton and Broadley (1985a) and Marques et al. (2018) provide discussions of the literature on the identifications of P. mababiensis and P. parvulus . The barcode is very inconclusive given that the closest hits on GenBank (92–95%) include samples of an unidentified species of Phrynobatrachus from Gabon ( KP 247505), one from the Republic of the Congo (KY080354), and P. keniensis ( JX 564885) and P. scheffleri ( FJ 889479), both from Kenya. Poynton and Broadley (1985a) suggest P. parvulus tends to be associated more with upland and forest conditions than

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

1 Phrynobatrachus cf. parvulus BMNH 2018.5873 -

2 Phrynobatrachus cf. parvulus BMNH 2018.5874

3 Phrynobatrachus cf. parvulus BMNH 2018.5880

4 Phrynobatrachus mababiensis FJ 889461 0.11 0.12 0.12 -

5 Phrynobatrachus mababiensis BMNH 2018.5831 0.11 0.11 0.12

6 Phrynobatrachus mababiensis BMNH 2018.5832 0.11 0.11 0.12 -

P. mababiensis . The localities where these specimens were found are all upland and either inside or near forest, therefore I refer them to P. cf. parvulus .

Phrynobatrachus mababiensis FitzSimons, 1932

Dwarf Puddle Frog

Material. MAYUKUYUKU: BMNH 2018.5831–32, BMNH 2018.5881; NANZILA PLAINS: BMNH 2018.5833; SIOMA NGWEZI NP: BMNH 2018.5834– 35. Comments: All specimens are juveniles and were found in dambo both during the day and at night. According to Poynton and Broadley (1985a), it is not easy to distinguish P. mababiensis from P. parvulus based on external morphology, but they suggest that some characters usually serve to separate them (i.e., labial and subtympanic markings, and shape of tarsal tubercle). The usual well-marked black and white barring on the upper and lower jaws is rather faint on these specimens. Zimkus and Schick (2010) suggest that there is cryptic diversity within the P. mababiensis group. The closest match on GenBank is P. mababiensis ( FJ 889461; 99% sequence similarity) from eastern Zambia, which belongs to a population that is sister to the clade containing P. ukingensis and P. ungujae (see Zimkus and Schick 2010).