Iberian midwife toad
| Iberian midwife toad | ||||||||||||
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Iberian midwife toad ( Alytes cisternasii ) |
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| Alytes cisternasii | ||||||||||||
| Boscá , 1879 |
The Iberian midwife toad ( Alytes cisternasii ) is a small frogfish in the Alytidae family .
description
With a length of 3.6 cm for the males and 4.2 cm for the females, it is slightly smaller than the common midwife toad ( Alytes obstetricans ), to which it is related. But it only has two bumps on the palm of the hand compared to three on the common midwife toad. Furthermore, their very short, broad head and particularly short hind legs are striking. In addition, in Alytes cisternasii the fourth finger is much shorter than the second and thickened, while in her relatives it is just as long or only slightly shorter than the second finger. There are a row or two of reddish warts on the upper eyelids.
The basic color is usually brownish, with a washed-out pattern often consisting of darker spots. Between the strongly protruding eyes, which have vertically slit-shaped pupils, there is sometimes a light-colored transverse band. The ventral side is dirty-white and unspotted.
Occurrence and way of life
The Iberian midwife toad is found in the southwestern part of the Iberian Peninsula , including in the south and east of Portugal and in western Spain. In sandy areas she spends the day in self-dug earth passages. Their way of life and their brood care behavior are similar to that of the common midwife toad. The males' mating calls, which sound like short whistles, sound between October and May in the evening and night hours. The number of eggs per clutch of a female varies between 30 and 60; a male can take over the clutch of several females at the same time and carry them around with him. The tadpoles , which are later dropped into the water (often in small streams), can be found next to each other in various stages of development throughout the year. At a temperature of 20 ° C, they need around 110 to 140 days to metamorphose . The most important predator of the adult animals is the viper snake .
Hazard and protection
Legal protection status (selection)
- Habitats Directive : Annex IV (species to be strictly protected)
- Federal Nature Conservation Act (BNatSchG): strictly protected
Red list classification (selection)
- IUCN: Near threatened (warning list)
literature
- Andreas & Christel Nöllert: The amphibians of Europe. Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 1992. ISBN 3-440-06340-2 .
- Heinz Schröder: amphibians and reptiles in colors. Over 80 newts, frogs, turtles, lizards, etc. Snakes of Europe. Otto Maier, Ravensburg 1973, ISBN 3-473-46116-4 .
Individual evidence
Web links
- Photos on www.herp.it
- Alytes cisternasii inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Posted by: Pedro Beja, Jaime Bosch, Miguel Tejedo, Miguel Lizana, Iñigo Martínez-Solano, Alfredo Salvador, Mario García-París, Ernesto Recuero Gil, Jan Willem Arntzen, Rafael Marquez, Carmen Diaz Paniagua, 2008. Accessed November 20 2013.