Turkish water frog

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Turkish water frog
Levant water frog, Pelophylax bedriagae. Photo taken in Judaydat Al-Wadi, near Damascus, Syria.

Levant water frog, Pelophylax bedriagae. Photo taken in Judaydat Al-Wadi, near Damascus, Syria.

Systematics
without rank: Amphibians (Lissamphibia)
Order : Frog (anura)
Subordination : Neobatrachia
Family : Real frogs (Ranidae)
Genre : Water frogs ( pelophylax )
Type : Turkish water frog
Scientific name
Pelophylax bedriagae
( Camerano , 1882)

The Turkish Frog , Levante-water frog or Bedriagas Frog ( Pelophylax bedriagae or Pelophylax cf. bedriagae , Synonym : Rana bedriagae , Rana levantina ) is within the order of Anura the family Real frogs (Ranidae), where it meets the water frogs assigned (Pelophylax) becomes. The species is distributed over parts of Asia Minor, the Middle East to the Delta of the Nile and up the Nile in Egypt. Since the detection of Pelophylax bedriagae as a separate species and the differentiation from Pelophylax ridibundus , it has received great research interest.

features

The Turkish water frog has a body length of around 80 to 100 millimeters, with the males reaching a maximum size of around 80 millimeters and the females a maximum of 100 millimeters. These are comparatively large water frogs with a pronounced sexual dimorphism .

The back color is very variable and ranges from green to gray-brown to brown. The back side usually has large and irregular dark brown, green or black spots. Dark markings, usually in the form of transverse ligaments, extend on the hind legs to the feet. There is almost always a narrow, light yellow to green stripe on the central back. It begins at the tip of the snout, its width usually increases slightly to the end of the head or the beginning of the back, after which it gradually narrows again and ends at the rear end of the body or just before it. The ventral side is whitish to gray and darkly spotted or marbled. The males have dark gray vocal sacs , the throat is darker than the rest of the body. The frog has a pointed snout and two pronounced, dorsolateral ribs on the sides of the back. The rear limbs are long and have extensive webbed feet between the toes. In sexually mature males, a fold of skin is formed on both sides of the mouth gap, from which the sound bladders emerge when called. During the mating season, the males have well-developed calluses on the outer and ventral parts of the first finger.

  • Brown color morphs with green mean penalties

  • Green color morphs

  • Male Levant Edible Frog from Birket Ata, Israel

  • Male Levant Edible Frog from Judaydat Al-Wadi, Damascus, Syria

distribution and habitat

Distribution area of ​​the Turkish water frog

1960 Mertens and Wermuth give Damascus, Syria, as Terra typica for Rana esculenta var. Bedriagae Camerano , 1882, thus Damascus is the type locality for Pelophylax bedriagae . In the Damascus area, the occurrence of Pelophylax bedriagae is largely limited to the Barada River and its tributaries, and also to the irrigation channels branching off from the Barada and the fish ponds it feeds, and the Levant water fosh has been found in numerous other localities in Syria. This species is also found in other countries in the eastern Mediterranean and bordering Asia to the Caucasus and southern Crimea . In detail, the distribution area includes western and southern Turkey , Lebanon and Israel . In Jordan , Pelophylax bedriagae is native to the Jordan Valley and neighboring localities, furthermore in wadis on the east bank of the Dead Sea, there also in watercourses that lead away from hot thermal springs and flow into the Dead Sea. The frog is found in large numbers in the Araq Desert Oasis , also in running waters of hot mineral springs. In Egypt , the Levant water frog is common and syntopic with Ptychadena nilotica in the Nile Delta . According to sightings, it is also found in the Fayum Depression and up the Nile to Luxor , and has been proven on both banks of the Suez Canal and on Sinai . In Iran , the species colonizes the northwest and southwest parts of the country. In Bulgaria , Pelophylax bedriagae was also detected in 2010 on the basis of the mating calls both at Primorsko and on the Vurbitza river near Momchilgrad . It was also found in Cyprus , but recently it is considered a new species, Pelophylax cypriensis. Furthermore, the Levant water frog can also be found on the Greek islands of Lesbos , Chios , Samos , Astypalea and Karpathos .

The Levant water frog has been identified as a neozoon in Belgium , where it probably came through the animal trade . In Malta, too, it was probably introduced via terrarium keeping and was able to establish itself there in the L-Ghadira ta 'Sarraflu nature reserve on the island of Gozo in one of the few permanent freshwater ponds in Malta. The species is in potential competition here with the native painted discoglossus ( Discoglossus pictus ) and could have additional negative effects on aquatic ecosystems.

Way of life

Turkish water frogs in the amplexus

In the way of life, the Levant water frog largely corresponds to the other species of the genus. It is an aquatic species that lives in permanent bodies of water with abundant aquatic vegetation, including creeks, ponds and permanent ponds, rain basins, lakes, streams, irrigation ditches, fish ponds, and rice fields. It can also be found in the surrounding moist terrestrial habitats. It is adaptable and able to live in bodies of water with organic pollution and in tributaries from hot mineral springs as well as in artificially created bodies of water.

The species is largely diurnal, but can also be seen or heard at night, reproduction is seasonal, and the mating season of the animals takes place primarily in May to June in shallow, permanent and protected waters.

Reproduction

In the Jordan Valley , the calling and mating season begins in late January and early February, in the northern highlands of Jordan in March and April, in the southern highlands in late April and May. In the Nile Delta , calling begins at the end of February and is high from March to September. During this time the males call continuously and mostly in choirs. The calling activity of these frogs is stimulated by calling other males. Their series of calls are longer and the pauses between the calls are shorter than with single calling males. Calling Levant water frogs are territorial. Large males keep greater distances from one another than small ones. Intruders into the territories are driven away by calling for the territory or by swimming.

The behavior of the Levant water frogs was investigated in Judaydat Al-Wadi (Idaide Al-Wadi) and in Otaybah (Otaya) about 15 km northwest and about 25 km east of Damascus, respectively. The frogs stayed in the valley of the Barada River in small bodies of water, irrigation channels about 1 meter wide and in fish ponds. All waters were fed by the Barada. In the Barada itself, Levant water frogs were found only in a few places where the flow velocity was slow.

When the observations began on May 25, 1997, the frogs were still in the pre-spawning season. The males called continuously in the morning, little or not at all in the early afternoon, then the calling started again and continued into the evening hours. The transition to the main spawning season took place around May 26, 1997. The males began to call in the morning and called continuously until late at night. The frogs were in small areas with rich, low vegetation. The distances between them were small, mostly only a few centimeters, but no pronounced territorial behavior was observed. Therefore, and also in comparison with other water frog species, calls to territory were relatively rare. During this time the frogs mated. Females swam towards the males and were instantly clutched. The egg packets were placed on the surface of the water between the plants. The main spawning season lasted only a few days. After that, the number of calling frogs decreased sharply.

Calls

The call recordings were made in Judaydat Al-Wadi on a tributary of the Barada at water temperatures of 14.3–19.5 ° Celsius and in Otaybah on a fish pond at 23–26 ° Celsius. The populations of the Levant water frogs at the two locations can be described as topotypical populations, because the locations are only 15 and 25 kilometers away from Damascus, the type locality of Pelophylax bedriagae , respectively.

The Levante water frogs have four types of calls: mating calls, area calls 1, 2 and 3, and there are also transition calls.

Mating call

Sound image (oscillogram) of a pairing call with ten pulse groups at 16.0 ° C water temperature. Tape recording in Judaydat Al-Wadi, Syria.

The pairing calls consist of groups of impulses which are separated from each other by intervals. On average, the calls last 700 milliseconds and are made up of an average of 10 pulse groups. The pairing calls are almost always given in series. Of nine call characteristics examined, four are correlated with water temperature. As the water temperature rises, the duration of the pulse groups, the pulse group period (time from the beginning of one pulse group to the beginning of the next) and the number of pulses per pulse group decrease, while the number of pulse groups per second increases. Call duration, interval between the calls and the pulse groups, call period and number of pulse groups per call are not influenced by the water temperature. The pairing calls have a broad frequency spectrum, which ranges from 150 to 5200 Hertz and between 2000 and 3200 Hertz has the dominant range.

The mating calls of Pelophylax bedriagae are precisely identified by nine call characteristics and thus represent a precise species-specific characteristic. Just by hearing the mating calls, the males of Pelophylax bedriagae can be reliably recognized and distinguished from other water frog species.

Revierruf 1

Type 1 calls to territory are the most common. They are made up of impulses that follow each other evenly. The amplitude modulation is characteristic. In the first part of a call, which is half or two thirds of a call, the amplitude increases evenly. The second part is characterized by two to three groups of impulses. The calls initially have discrete frequency bands, followed by a wide, noisy frequency band. The duration of these calls decreases as the water temperature rises.

Revier call 2

The males utter territorial calls 2 primarily during the main spawning season. Sometimes two to four calls follow one another. The calls also change with the water temperature. When the water temperature rises, the call duration decreases.

Revier call 3

Revierruf 3 is inconspicuous compared to the other calls. It is uttered less often and is quieter than the area calls 1 and 2. The area calls 3 consist of an even sequence of very short pulses, the amplitude of which increases slowly and reaches its maximum shortly before the end of the call. The frequency spectrum extends from 220 to 875 Hertz at the beginning of a call, increases gradually and extends from 220 to 1600 Hertz at the end of the call. The calls sound like a dull growl.

Transition calls

Calls that began as Revier call 1 or 2 and turned into pairing calls with clearly structured impulse groups were heard relatively often.

nutrition

The type of food is known from Pelophylax bedriagae from the Sarfaryab region, Kogilouyeh Province and Boyer-Ahmad, southern Iran. Pelophylax bedriagae is the only species of frog that occurs there. The frogs live in large numbers in the rice fields. The studies on the diet were carried out in summer and autumn 2017 and in spring 2018. The stomach contents of 181 frogs were obtained by flushing. A total of 1148 prey animals were collected, 939 of which were identified, with the remaining 209 this was no longer possible due to advanced digestion. The food spectrum of these frogs is very broad. Three quarters of the food ingested was of terrestrial origin and one quarter of aquatic origin; the main part was formed by Hymenoptera, Gastropoda and Coleoptera in both sexes. The type of food also depended on the season. In the spring the frogs mainly preyed on Diptera and Dermaptera, in the summer Hymenoptera and in the autumn Gastropoda.There seem to be gender-specific preferences, since Crustacea, Diplopda and Isopoda were only found in the stomachs of females, Siphonaptera and Opiliones only in the stomachs of males.

Karyotype

Male and female Levantine water frogs have 26 chromosomes (2n = 26). Seven chromosomes are metacentric, six are submetacentric. The chromosomes are the same in both sexes, sex chromosomes have not been identified.

Systematics

The Levant water frog was scientifically described as early as 1882 by the Italian entomologist and herpetologist Lorenzo Camerano under the name Rana esculenta var. Bedriagae and thus as a variant of the pond frog ( Rana "esculenta" ), but later regarded as a synonym for it. Damascus in Syria was specified as the type locality and was named after the Russian herpetologist Jaques Vladimir de Bedriaga (1854–1906). By analyzing the mating calls of the frogs in Israel, a working group led by the Bonn zoologist Hans Schneider demonstrated in 1992 that the water frogs living here differ bioacoustically from the sea frog, Rana ridibunda, and are accordingly to be regarded as an independent species. They described the new species as Rana levantina with the common German name Levante-Frosch, but the name was classified as a junior synonym of Rana bedriagae, which was raised to a species .

The proof that the water frogs at Hadera, Israel, the type locality of Rana levantina and those of Damascus, the type locality of Rana esculenta var. Bedriagae , are identical and differ from Rana ridibunda and also from Rana perezi , resulted from the comparison of acoustic and morphometric data. The species is recognized: Pelophylax bedriagae ( Camerano , 1882).

In 1988 Arikan described the water frogs of Lake Beyşehir in southwestern Anatolia as a subspecies of the sea frog Rana ridibunda caralitana. The results of the following investigations led to different conclusions, either it was rejected or regarded as a subspecies of Pelophylax bedriagae , it is now considered a separate species: Pelophylax caralitanus ( Arikan , 1988), Anatolian water frog or Beyşehir water frog.

It seems possible that other new species will be discovered in the current range of Pelophylax bedriagae . This will change the area, but the species itself will continue to exist.

Danger

The Turkish water frog is classified as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species because it has a relatively large range, is more adaptable to habitat changes and is believed to have a relatively large overall population. Within the distribution areas, it can generally be found frequently in the area of ​​suitable freshwater habitats. It is regional mainly because of the drainage of suitable habitats. Added to this are water pollution, periods of severe drought and the expansion of coastal areas. In addition, it is caught in large quantities, especially in Turkey and Egypt, and exported to Western Europe, where it is used as a popular food ( frogs' legs ) due to its size . On the smaller islands of Greece where this species is found, it is sometimes threatened by the abstraction of water from its habitats by the local population.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ Pelophylax bedriagae on amphibiaweb.org; accessed on January 15, 2020.
  2. ↑ a b c Ahmad M. Disi, Zuhair S. Amr: Morphometrics, distribution and ecology of amphibians in Jordan. In: Vertebrate Zoology. Volume 60, 2010, pp. 147-162.
  3. ^ A b Robert Mertens, Heinz Wermuth: The amphibians and reptiles of Europe. Waldemar Kramer Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, 1960. 264 pp.
  4. ^ A b c d Hans Schneider: Calls and reproductive behavior of the water frogs of Damascus, Syria (Amphibia: Anura: Rana bedriagae Camerano, 1882). In: Zoology in the Middle East. Volume 15 (1), 1997; Pp. 51-66. doi : 10.1080 / 09397140.1997.10637739
  5. ↑ a b Ulrich Sinsch, Hans Schneider: Taxonomic reassessment of Middle Eastern water frogs: Morphological variation among populations considered as Rana ridibunda, R. bedriagae or R. levantina. In: Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolution Research. Volume 37, 1999, pp. 67-73.
  6. ↑ a b c d e f Dieter Glandt: The amphibians and reptiles of Europe. All species in portrait. Quelle & Meyer 2015; Pp. 216-2018, ISBN 978-3-494-01581-1 .
  7. ↑ Gerhard Joermann, Ibrahim Baran, Hans Schneider: The mating call of Rana ridibunda (Amphibia: Anura) in western Turkey: Bioacoustic analysis and taxonomic Consequences. In: Zoologischer Anzeiger, Volume 220, 1988, pp. 225-232.
  8. ^ Hans Schneider, Ulrich Sinsch: New bioacoustic records of Rana bedriagae Camerano, 1882 (Anura: Ranidae) from Turkey. In: Bonn zoological contributions. Volume 50, 2002, pp. 35-48.
  9. ↑ Souad Hraoui-Bloquet, Riyad A. Sadek, Roberto Sindaco, Alberto Venchi: The herpetofauna of Lebanon: new data on distribution. In: Zoology in the Middle East. Volume 27, 2002, pp. 35-46.
  10. ↑ Eviatar Nevo, Hans Schneider: Structure and variation of Rana ridibunda mating call in Israel (Amphibia: Anura). In: Israel Journal of Zoology. Volume 32, 1983, pp. 45-60.
  11. ^ Hans Schneider: Calls of the Levantine Frog, Rana bedriagae, at Birket Ata, Israel (Amphibia: Anura). In: Zoology in the Middle East. Volume 19, 1999, pp. 101-116.
  12. ↑ Mamdouh Saad Ahmed Akef, Hans Schneider: The eastern form of Rana ridibunda (Anura: Ranidae) inhabits the Nile delta, In: Zoologischer Anzeiger. Volume 223, 1989, pp. 129-138.
  13. ↑ Abd Al-rahman Tawfik, Mamdouh Saad Ahmed Akef, SS Abdel-Mageid: Electrophoretic and morphometric evidence for two species of the genus Rana (Amphibia, Ranidae) and some aspects of their variability. In: Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. Volume 107B, 1994, pp. 573-577.
  14. ^ Adel A. Ibrahim: First record of Pelophylax bedriagae (Amphibia, Ranidae) in the Suez Canal region. In: Egyptian Herpetological Notes. Volume 4, 2011, pp. 332-332.
  15. ^ Sherif S. Baha El Din: A guide to the reptiles and amphibians of Egypt. The American University in Cairo Press, El Cairo, 2006, 360 pp. ISBN 978-977-424-979-2
  16. ↑ Alireza Pesarakloo, Eskandar Rastegar-Pouyani, Nasrollah Rastegar-Pouyani, Hajigholi Kami, Masoumeh Najibzadeh, Azar Khosravani: The first taxonomic revaluation of the Iranian water frogs of the genus Pelophylax (Anura: Ranome mitochond.) Using sequences of the genus miteochond. In: Mitochondrial DNA PartA. Volume 28, published online 2016, pp. 392–398.
  17. ↑ Simeon Lukanov, Georgi Popgeorgiev, Nikolay Tzankov: First bioacoustic and morphological data for the presence of Pelophylax bedriagae in Bulgaria. In: Acta Scientifica Naturalis. Volume 5, 2018, pp. 54-63.
  18. ↑ Wolfgang Böhme, Hansjörg Wiedl: Status and zoogeography of the herpetofauna of Cyprus, with taxonomic and natural history notes on selected species (genera Rana, Coluber, Natrix, Vipera). In: Zoology in the Middle East. Volume 10, 1994, pp. 31-52.
  19. ↑ Jörg Plötner, Felix Baier et al .: Genetic data reveal that water frogs of Cyprus (genus Pelphylax) are an endemic species of Messinian origin. In: Zoosystematic and Evolution. Volume 88, 2012, pp. 261-283.
  20. ↑ Arnold Scibberas, Patrick J. Schembri: Occurrence of the alien Bedriaga's frog (Rana bedriagae) Camerano, 1882 in the Maltese Islands, and implications for conservation Herpetological Bulletin March 2006; Pp. 2–5. ( Full text ).
  21. ↑ a b c d pelophylax bedriagae in the endangered species Red List of IUCN 2009. Submitted By: Papenfuss, T. et al. , 2008. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  22. ↑ Mamdouh SA Akef, Hans Schneider: The eastern form of Rana ridibunda (Anura: Ranidae) inhabits the Nile delta. In: Zoologischer Anzeiger . Volume 223, 1989, pp. 129-138.
  23. ↑ Fatemeh Bam-E-Zar, Behzad Fathinia, Arya Shafaei-Pour: Trophology of Levant Green Frog, Pelophylax bedriagae (Amphibia: Anura: Ranidae) in Choram Township, Iran. In: North-western Journal of Zoology. Volume 15, 2019, pp. 168–174, e191502.
  24. ↑ Enas S. Al Satari, Nisreen A. Al Qunaan et al .: A note on the karyotype of the amphibian Pelophylax bedriagae from Jordan. In: Jordan Journal of Biological Sciences. Volume 8, 2015, pp. 325-326.
  25. ↑ Lorenzo Camerano: Recherches sur les variations de la rana esculenta et du bufo viridis dans le bassin de la Méditerranée. Zoologie et Zootechnie 10, 1882; Pp. 680-692.
  26. ↑ Hans Schneider, Ulrich Sinsch: Mating call variation in populations of Rana ridibunda (Anura: Ranidae): Statistical evaluations and taxonomic implications. In: Journal for Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research. Volume 30, 1992, pp. 297-315.
  27. ^ Hans Schneider, Ulrich Sinsch, Eviatar Nevo: The Lake Frogs in Israel represent a new species. Zoologischer Anzeiger 228, 1992; Pp. 97-106.
  28. ↑ Hans Schneider, Ulrich Sinsch (1999): Taxonomic reassessment of Middle Eastern water frogs: Bioacoustic variation among populations considered as Rana ridibunda, R. bedriagae or R. levantina. In: Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolution Research. Volume 37, 1999, pp. 57-65.
  29. ↑ a b Frost, Darrel R. 2020. Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0 (02-15-2020). Electronic Database accessible at http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/index.html . American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA. doi.org/10.5531/db.vz.0001
  30. ^ Hüseyin Arikan: On a new form of Rana ridibunda (Anura, Ranidae) from Turkey. In: Istanbul Üniversitesi Fen Fakanschesi Biyoloji Dergisi. Volume 53, 1988, pp. 81-87.

literature

  • Sherif S. Baha El Din: A guide to the reptiles and amphibians of Egypt. The American University in Cairo Press, El Cairo, 2006, 360 pp. ISBN 978-977-424-979-2
  • Christophe Dufresnes: Amphibians of Europe, North Africa & Middle East. Bloomsbury Wildlife, Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, London, 2019, 224 pp., ISBN PB: 978-1-4729-4137-4
  • Daniel Escoriza, Jihène Ben Hassine: Amphibians of North Africa. Elsevier Inc. 2019, 350 pages, ISBN 978-0-12-815476-2 .
  • Gerhard Joermann, Ibrahim Baran, Hans Schneider: The mating call of Rana ridibunda (Amphibia: Anura) in western Turkey: Bioacoustic analysis and taxonomic consequences. In: Zoologischer Anzeiger. Volume 220, 1988, pp. 225-232.
  • Simeon Lukanov, Georgi Popgeorgiev, Nikolay Tzankov: First bioacoustic and morphological data for the presence of Pelophylax bedriagae in Bulgaria. In: Acta Scientifica Naturalis. Volume 5, 2018, pp. 54-63. doi : 10.2478 / asn-2018-0008
  • Birgit Kuhn, Hans Schneider: Mating and territorial calls of the frog Rana ridibunda and their temperature-dependent variability. In: Zoologischer Anzeiger. Volume 212, 1984, pp. 273-305.
  • Robert Mertens, Heinz Wermuth: The amphibians and reptiles of Europe. Waldemar Kramer Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, 1960. 264 pp.
  • Eviatar Nevo, GM Filippucci: Genetic differentiation between Israeli an Greek populations of marsh frog, Rana ridibunda. In: Zoologischer Anzeiger , Volume 221, Jena 1988, pp. 418-424.
  • Hans Schneider, Theodora S. Sofianidou: The mating call of Rana ridibunda (Amphibia, Anura) in northern Greece as compared with those of Yugoslavian and Israeli populations: proposal of a new subspecies. In. Zoological indicator. Volume 214, 1985, pp. 309-319.
  • Hans Schneider, Ulrich Sinsch: Mating call variation in populations of Rana ridibunda (Anura: Ranidae): Statistical evaluations and taxonomic implications. In: Journal for Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research. Volume 30, 1992, pp. 297-315.
  • Hans Schneider, Ulrich Sinsch, Eviatar Nevo: The lake frogs in Israel represent a new species. In: Zoologischer Anzeiger. Volume 229, 1992, pp. 97-106.
  • Hans Schneider: Calls and reproductive behavior of the water frogs of Damascus, Syria (Amphibia: Anura: Rana bedriagae Camerano, 1882). In: Zoology in the Middle East. Volume 15 (1), 1997; Pp. 51-66. doi : 10.1080 / 09397140.1997.10637739 .
  • Hans Schneider: Bioacoustics of the Froschlurche - native and related species. With audio CD. Supplement to the Zeitschrift für Feldherpetologie 6. Laurenti Verlag, Bielefeld 2005. ISBN 3-933066-23-9 . Audio samples 80–81.
  • Ulrich Sinsch, Hans Schneider, Ugur Kaya, Hüseyin Arikan: The water frogs (Anura, Ranidae) of Turkey: a morphometric view on systematics. In: Herpetological Journal. Volume 12, 2002, pp. 141-153.
  • Hans Schneider, Ulrich Sinsch: Contributions of bioacoustics to the taxonomy of the Anura. In: Harold Heatwole and Michael J. Tyler (Eds.): Amphibian Biology, Volume 7, Systematics. 2007, pp. 2893-2932. Chipping Norton NSW, Australia, (Surrey Beatty & Sons).

Web links

Commons : Turkish Edible Frog ( Pelophylax bedriagae )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files