Breviceps ombelanonga Nielsen, Conradie, Ceríaco, Bauer, Heinicke, Stanley, and Blackburn, 2020

Conradie, Werner, Keates, Chad, Verburgt, Luke, Baptista, Ninda L. & Harvey, James, 2023, Contributions to the herpetofauna of the Angolan Okavango- Cuando-Zambezi river drainages. Part 3: Amphibians, Amphibian & Reptile Conservation (e 325) 17 (1), pp. 19-56 : 27

Breviceps ombelanonga Nielsen, Conradie, Ceríaco, Bauer, Heinicke, Stanley, and Blackburn, 2020

Angolan Rain Frog ( Fig. 7 ; Map 6 )

Material (4 specimens): PEM A12787, Quembo River source lake, -13.13544° 19.04397°, 1,374 m asl; PEM A12800, Cuanavale River source lake, -13.08934° 18.89485°, 1,359 m asl; PEM A12770, Cuando River source, -13.00334° 19.13564°, 1,362 m asl; PEM A12537, Cuito River source lake, -12.68935° 18.36012°, 1,431 m asl. Additional material (1 specimen): SAIAB 204537, Quembo River source lake, -13.13583° 19.04528°, 1,370 m asl. Description: Medium sized Breviceps ; stout body; snout extremely shortened; pupils horizontally elliptical; tympanum not visible; outer metacarpal tubercle flat and undivided; short limbs; webbing absent; well-developed inner metatarsal tubercle fused with the outer metatarsal tubercle, with no deep cleft present, elongated, and protruding outwards. Coloration varied from red with scattered black blotches, dark brown with red spots and markings, and light brown with red spots and black blotches ( Nielsen et al. 2020). The only female collected measured 30.1 mm ( PEM A12770); adult males (n = 3) varied from 18.3–26.6 (26.2) mm (largest male: PEM A12787). Habitat and natural history notes: Males were only heard calling during the day, especially after heavy rains; calling did not continue into the evenings. Call sites were among leaf litter in dense miombo woodland. Comments: The taxonomic status of Angolan Breviceps was recently addressed, leading to the description of this material as a new species, B. ombelanonga ( Nielsen et al. 2020) . Broader sampling across Angola may detect the presence of other species (e.g., B. adspersus to the south and B. poweri to the east) and even additional undescribed species. For now, all historical records are mapped as B. ombelanonga , until their taxonomic status can be confirmed.

Figures

Map 6. Distribution of Breviceps ombelanonga in Angola.

Fig. 7. Adult male Breviceps ombelanonga from Cuanavale River source. Photo by Luke Verburgt.