Iberian mud diver

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Iberian mud diver
Benny Trapp Pelodytes ibericus.jpg

Iberian mud diver ( Pelodytes ibericus )

Systematics
without rank: Amphibians (Lissamphibia)
Order : Frog (anura)
Superfamily : Pelodytoidea
Family : Pelodytidae
Genre : Mud diver ( Pelodytes )
Type : Iberian mud diver
Scientific name
Pelodytes ibericus
Sánchez-Herraíz , Barbadillo , Machordom & Sanchíz , 2000

The Iberian Mud Diver ( Pelodytes ibericus ) is a very delicate frog from the family of only three species of the Mud Diver (Pelodytidae) widespread in the south of the Iberian Peninsula . Its first description comes from the year 2000 and is therefore unusually young for a European vertebrate species . Until then, the species was not separated as such from the western mud diver ( Pelodytes punctatus ). Due to their external similarity, there is apparently not yet clarity in all regions of Spain and Portugal about the species affiliation of local Pelodytes populations. The closest relatives of parsley frog are American spadefoot toad and in Europe the local pelobatoidea as spadefoot or knife base .

features

Mud divers are small frogs with relatively long hind legs, flat heads and protruding eyes with vertically slit pupils . The Iberian mud diver reaches a head-torso length of a maximum of 41.5 millimeters, with the males remaining slightly smaller. Compared to the slightly larger western mud diver, the snout appears a little wider and less elongated or more rounded in the side profile. The extremities and limbs are slightly shorter than this one. The gray, sometimes greenish basic color of the smooth to granular upper side is interrupted by olive-green, oval spots. In some individuals, two pale, intersecting stripes form an "X" pattern. There are also raised "warts" on the back. The smooth-skinned ventral side is white to cream-colored. In contrast to Pelodytes punctatus, the inner heel hump under the sole of the foot is not rounded, but rather conical ; There are hardly any webs between the toes. The males' oestrus calluses visible on the inside of the fingers and forearms during the mating season are brown to blackish in color. In addition, the males have paired internal sound bubbles with which they generate soft courtship calls uttered under water.

distribution

The distribution area of ​​the species includes the south of Spain - with Andalusia (without its eastern part) and the south of Extremadura  - as well as the south and probably also the center of Portugal. Vertically it reaches almost from sea level to about 1450 m above sea level in the province of Granada (according to other data: up to 900 m in the Sierra Morena ). However, the exact delimitation of the area, also in relation to the western mud diver, requires further investigations, especially in northeastern Andalusia and in Portugal. In regions such as the lowlands of Huelva and Cádiz , the species occurs more frequently, in other areas of the distribution area it is more dispersed or rare.

Habitat and way of life

Iberian mud divers inhabit open to bushy, quite dry landscapes, which are structured by scattered, light pine forests or with fragments of maquis . Even more intensively cultivated agricultural areas and brackish marshes are not generally avoided. In contrast to most European amphibians , the animals are apparently more or less active all year round - with activity peaks more in the winter half of the year than in the dry and hot summer months. You can sometimes have several seasonal spawning phases depending on more abundant rainfall events - which is especially the case from October to April and especially between November and January. Weed ponds, water-filled lanes, ditches, lagoons and other shallow, often temporary, sunny watering places are used for oviposition and larval development. The reproductive biology is similar to that of the western mud diver . Characteristic in this context are, among other things, an amplexus in the lumbar region of the female and the release of short spawning cords that are attached to stalks and similar structures in the water.

The daytime activity of the species is generally concentrated in the evening and night hours; while foraging for food, insects and other invertebrates are preyed on.

Hazard and protection

The IUCN classifies the total population of the species in its international red list as “LC” (not endangered) despite local decrease trends. At least in the Spanish national parks Doñana and Sierra Nevada there is also protection of habitats. In addition to civilization-related impairments and loss of habitats , especially the spawning waters, risk factors also include artificial restocking measures with partly exotic fish species. These decimate the spawn and especially the tadpoles of the mud divers.

Legal protection status

Sources and further information

The article in the version of November 11, 2007 was mainly created using the English-language websites of "AmphibiaWeb.org" and "iucnredlist.org" listed under "Weblinks" and accessed on the date mentioned.

literature

  • Rudolf Malkmus: The distribution of amphibians and reptiles in the region of the Serra de Grândola (Portugal). In: Zeitschrift für Feldherpetologie 9 (2), 2002, pp. 185–210. Laurenti, Bielefeld, ISSN  0946-7998 .
  • Rudolf Malkmus: The herpetofauna of a central Portuguese karst area. In: Zeitschrift für Feldherpetologie 12 (2), 2005, pp. 211–236. Laurenti, Bielefeld, ISSN  0946-7998 .
  • Rudolf Malkmus: The herpetofauna of the eastern Beira Baixa (Portugal). In: Zeitschrift für Feldherpetologie 14 (2), 2007, pp. 191–224. Laurenti, Bielefeld, ISSN  0946-7998 .
  • Andreas and Christel Nöllert: The amphibians of Europe . Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 1992, ISBN 3-440-06340-2 (still Pelodytes punctatus including Pelodytes ibericus )
  • MJ Sánchez-Herráiz, LJ Barbadillo-Escrivá, A. Machordom, B. Sanchíz: A new species of pelodytid frog from the Iberian Peninsula. In: Herpetologica 56 (1), 2000, pp. 105-118.

Web links

Commons : Iberian Mud Diver ( Pelodytes ibericus )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files