A new earless species of Poyntonophrynus (Anura, Bufonidae) from the Serra da Neve Inselberg, Namibe Province, Angola

By

Ceríaco, Luis M. P.
Marques, Mariana Pimentel
Bandeira, Suzana
Agarwal, Ishan
Stanley, Edward L., 1982-
Bauer, Aaron M. (Aaron Matthew), 1961-
Heinicke, Mathew
Blackburn, David C. (David Chandler), 1969-

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2018

Original Publication

ZooKeys

Volume

780

Pages

109-136

Subjects

Africa , Amphibia , columella , Osteology , toad

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.780.25859

 

Abstract

African pygmy toads of the genusPoyntonophrynusare some of the least known species of African toads. The genus comprises ten recognized species endemic to sub-Saharan Africa, five of which are restricted to southwestern Africa. Recent field research in Angola provided new material for three species ofPoyntonophrynus, including a morphologically distinctive population from the Serra da Neve Inselberg. Based on a combination of external morphology, high-resolution computed tomography scanning, and molecular phylogenetic analysis, the Serra da Neve population is described as new species that is nested within the genus. The most striking character that differentiates the newly described species from its congeners is the lack of a tympanic middle ear, a condition common in the family Bufonidae, but so far not known forPoyntonophrynus. The description of this new species from southwestern Angola reinforces the biogeographic importance of the region and further suggests that southwestern Africa is the cradle of diversity for this genus.