Moroccan knife foot

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Moroccan knife foot
Systematics
without rank: Amphibians (Lissamphibia)
Order : Frog (anura)
Superfamily : Toad frogs (Pelobatoidea)
Family : Pelobatidae
Genre : European sea toads ( pelobates )
Type : Moroccan knife foot
Scientific name
Pelobates varaldii
Pasteur & Bons , 1959

The Moroccan knife foot ( Pelobates varaldii ) is a frog and belongs to the genus of European paddle- foot toads ( Pelobates ) within the superfamily of toad frogs . With the sharp-edged, calloused growths on the soles of his feet, he can, like other paddock toads, bury himself very quickly in loose soil, where he spends the day. In contrast to its relatives, which are mainly concentrated in Europe, it is probably the only Pelobates species to be found in North Africa.

distribution and habitat

The Moroccan knife foot occurs in the Moroccan coastal plains. The range of the species is very fragmented. The southernmost known occurrence is in the salt marshes of Oualidia , the northernmost safe in the area of ​​the city of Larache (; however, it cannot be ruled out that a questionable evidence of the related knife foot for the Spanish exclave Melilla can actually be assigned to the Moroccan knife foot). The species was never found above 350 meters above sea level.

The species prefers sandy soils with little vegetation in the lowlands, sometimes within cork oak forests . The breeding waters are often temporary bodies of water like rain puddles. The Moroccan knife foot is not found in cultivated land and other areas modified by humans. The animals spend half of the year in a state of persistence (summer dormancy) buried in the ground.

Systematics

The Moroccan knife foot and three other closely related species of the genus Pelobates usually form an independent family Pelobatidae. These are the common spadefoot toad ( P. fuscus ), the knife foot ( P. cultripes ) and the Syrian common toad ( P. syriacus ).

Danger

The Moroccan Knife Foot is classified as endangered in the IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species , as its range is probably less than 500 km 2 and is also very fragmented. In addition, a continuous change in habitat is observed and a decrease in the population is assumed. Information on the size of the total population of this species is not available.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Pelobates varaldii in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2009. Posted by: Alfredo Salvador, David Donaire-Barroso, Tahar Slimani, El Hassan El Mouden & Philippe Geniez, 2006. Retrieved on 19 January, 2010.

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