Midwife toads

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Midwife toads
Common midwife toad (Alytes obstetricans)

Common midwife toad ( Alytes obstetricans )

Systematics
Class : Amphibians (Amphibia)
Subclass : Lissamphibia
Order : Frog (anura)
Subordination : Archaeobatrachia
Family : Alytidae
Genre : Midwife toads
Scientific name
Alytes
Wagler , 1830

The midwife toads ( Alytes ) are a genus of the Frogs (Anura), which is counted according to the systematics of amphibians used here to the family Alytidae . These are quite small, phylogenetically "primitive" amphibians with a special form of brood care.

general characteristics

Midwife toads are small, petite to squat frogs of mostly inconspicuous, gray or brown color. Their pupils are perpendicular and look slit-shaped in bright light; the eardrum is usually easily recognizable. Depending on the type, there are two or three balls of the hands on the underside of the front feet. Their calls are reminiscent of bright flutes, whistles or bells.

distribution

The distribution is limited to western and southwestern Europe and a very small part of northwestern Africa. The Iberian Peninsula stands out with the presence of three mainland species and one other species endemic to the Balearic Islands . Only the common midwife toad occurs in western Central Europe. In Germany, the common midwife toad reaches its eastern limit of distribution in the eastern Harz foreland. Two of the species were only discovered and described in the last decades of the 20th century, which is very unusual for vertebrates in Europe.

Reproduction

The most striking feature of the genus is reproductive biology. The males of all species take over the spawning cords from the females during mating (inguinal amplexus ) on land by wrapping them around their hind legs or heel joints in complex movements after insemination. They then carry the eggs around with them for several weeks until they finally release the hatching tadpoles into a body of water. Their early development phase is therefore potentially better protected from predators than when spawning other frogs are deposited directly into the water. (For more information on reproductive behavior and the interpretation of the name, see Common Midwife Toad .)

Taxonomy

In the past, the species of the midwife toads were assigned to the common disc flukes (Discoglossidae). Depending on the systematic overview, this family now only consists of the genus Discoglossus or it is understood as a synonym of the family Alytidae, in which case both genera - Alytes and Discoglossus - are included. The first variant is shown here, i.e. both Alytidae and Discoglossidae are treated as monogeneric .

Common midwife toad male with hatching spawn

Moorish midwife toad ( Alytes maurus ): The moorish midwife toad has long been treated as a subspecies of Alytes obstetricans and is accordingly very similar. New phylogenetic studies in 2004 led to the delimitation with its own species status. Their occurrence is apparently largely limited to the Rif Mountains within Morocco . It is the only Alytes species outside of Europe.

Phylogenetic systematics

A phylogenetic study of the genus carried out in 2004 by I. Martínez-Solano, HA Gonçalves, JW Arntzen and M. García-París revealed the following cladogram:







Alytes obstetricans boscai


   

Alytes obstetricans obstetricans



   

Alytes obstetricans pertinax



   

Alytes obstetricans almogavarii



   

Alytes maurus


   

Alytes dickhilleni


   

Alytes muletensis





   

Alytes cisternasii



Template: Klade / Maintenance / Style

The sister group of the genus Alytes is the genus Discoglossus .

Others

Obstetrician toads also became known through the attempts by Paul Kammerer , which were characterized by falsification allegations, in which he claimed to have proven in 1924 that the thumb callosities of male toads are passed on to their offspring through inheritance of acquired properties ( Lamarckism ).

protection

Legal protection status

  • Fauna-Flora-Habitat-Guideline (FFH-RL): The Mallorca midwife toad is listed in Appendix II ("Special protected areas are to be designated"); on Appendix IV ("species to be strictly protected") also these as well as the Iberian and common midwife toad. Alytes dickhilleni had not yet been described as a separate species at the time the Habitats Directive was first published (1992), but should also be included in Appendix IV as the exclusion of A. cisternasii . The Moorish midwife toad occurs outside the scope of the Habitats Directive in Africa.
  • Furthermore, all European amphibian species are considered "specially protected" in accordance with the Federal Species Protection Ordinance , unless they are "strictly protected".

Individual evidence

  1. ^ I. Martinez-Solano, HA Goncalves, JW Arntzen, M. Garcia-Paris: Phylogenetic relationships and biogeography of midwife toads (Discoglossidae: Alytes) . In: Journal of Biogeography . No. 31, 2004, pp. 603-618.
  2. ↑ Gaetano Odierna, Franco Andreone, Gennaro Aprea, Oscar Arribas, Teresa Capriglione, Miguel Vences: Cytological and molecular analysis in the rare discoglossid species, Alytes muletensis (Sanchiz & Adrover 1977) and its bearing on archaeobatrachian phylogeny . Chromosome Research 8: 435–442, 2000 ( online ; PDF; 254 kB)

Web links

Commons : Midwife Toads ( Alytes )  - Collection of images, videos, and audio files
Wiktionary: Midwife toad  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations