Bufo eichwaldi
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Bufo eichwaldi , female (Golestan, Iran) |
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| Bufo eichwaldi | ||||||||||||
| Litvinchuk et al., 2008 |
Bufo eichwaldi is a species of the real toad with a small distribution area west and south of the Caspian Sea . The species was only described in2008.
features
It is a relatively large species of toad, females reach 17 centimeters, males 12 centimeters in length.
The species is very similar to the related species common toad and colchian toad and is morphologically difficult to distinguish from them ( cryptospecies ). The distinction is essentially based on genetic markers and the comparison of allozymes . Morphologically, the differentiation can be attempted on the basis of the proportions of the head (length and width of the muzzle in relation to the length of the head). This trait is gender specific: the muzzle of the males is considerably longer than that of the females. It is typical for both sexes that it is abruptly set off at the end and therefore angular in profile, not rounded. In contrast to the Colchian Toad, the belly of the males is spotted with extensive black spots (in this species only in the females). As is typical for the genus, the skin has numerous warts on the upper side, which in this species are rounded in profile and set apart on the otherwise relatively smooth skin.
Ecology and way of life
Bufo eichwaldi is a species of the Hyrkanian forest zone, it lives in the subtropical , humid forests of broad-leaved, deciduous deciduous trees of the hill zone and low mountain areas, preferably in areas with interspersed meadows and clearings. It is widespread from the shores of the Caspian Sea (at sea level) to around 1,200 meters above sea level. Occasionally it is seen in gardens or tea plantations, but can hardly live here permanently. The tadpoles develop, for example, in widening or small damming of spring streams. The species is strictly nocturnal and hides in hiding during the day.
The generation duration of the species is estimated at around five to eight years. The toads become sexually mature in their third or fourth year of life. February is given as the spawning period. Since stagnant or slow-flowing waters are rare in Hyrcania and the species does not spawn in brooks or rivers, even small bodies of water or reservoirs of water in the habitat are occupied by hundreds of individuals during the spawning season. Tadpoles metamorphize in the lowlands in May, in the low mountain ranges in June to July. The freshly transformed young toads are then 12 to 13 millimeters long.
distribution
The species was described from the Talysh Mountains in Azerbaijan. Later it was also found in the southern part of Iran. It is widespread in Iran on the northern slope of the Elburs Mountains south of the Caspian Sea, also in the still forested sections east of this lake.
Danger
According to the IUCN Red List, the species is considered "endangered" (vulnerable, vu). The threat is due to the relatively small distribution area and the destruction and islanding of the forests it inhabits, which are increasingly being converted into cultivated land. It is then assumed that it has lost around 30 percent of its population in the past 25 years.
Taxonomy and systematics
The species was named in honor of the naturalist Karl Eduard Eichwald . The occurrence of toads in the range of the species was previously poorly researched, the earlier naturalists assigned the animals they found here to either Bufo bufo or Bufo verrucosissimus . Their independence was only recognized with modern research methods. According to phylogenetic analyzes based on the comparison of homologous DNA sequences, it is the earliest split off line of the western Bufo bufo species complex and thus sister species of Bufo bufo , Bufo verrucosissimus and Bufo spinosus taken together. The splitting, estimated by the methods of the molecular clock , took place about 9 to 13 million years ago (according to another estimate 7.4 million years ago). Despite the morphological similarity, the genetic divergence is considerable, which points to stabilizing selection .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Spartak N. Litvinchuk, Leo J. Borkin, Dmitry V. Skorinov, Jury M. Rosanov (2008): A new species of common toads from the Talysh Mountains, south-eastern Caucasus: genome size, allozyme, and morphological evidences . Russian Journal of Herpetology, 15: 19-43.
- ↑ a b Omid Mozaffari & Esmaeil Saeidi Moghari (2012): Sexual dimorphism in Bufo eichwaldi snout shape with description of its usage in male - male competition . Russian Journal of Herpetology, 19: 349-351.
- ^ A b IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2012): Bufo eichwaldi. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.2
- ↑ Spartak N. Litvinchuk, Glib O. Mazepa, Haji G. Kami, Markus Auer (2012): Taxonomic status and distribution of common toads in Iran . Herpetological Journal 22: 271-274.
- ↑ J. Garcia-Porta, SN Litvinchuk, PA Crochet, A. Romano, PH Geniez, M. Lo-Valvo, P. Lymberakis, S. Carranza (2012): Molecular phylogenetics and historical biogeography of the west-palearctic common toads ( Bufo bufo species complex) . Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 63 (2012), pp. 113-130. doi : 10.1016 / j.ympev.2011.12.019
- ↑ E. Recuero, D. Canestrelli, J. Vörös, K. Szabó, NA Poyarkov, JW Arntzen, J. Crnobrnja-Isailovic, AA Kidov, D. Coga˘lniceanu, FP Caputo, G. Nascetti, I. Martínez-Solano (2012): Multilocus species tree analyzes resolve the radiation of the widespread Bufo bufo species group (Anura, Bufonidae) . Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 62: 71-86. doi : 10.1016 / j.ympev.2011.09.008