Amnirana cf. albolabris (Hallowell, 1856)

Badjedjea, Gabriel, Masudi, Franck M., Akaibe, Benjamin Dudu & Gvoždík, Václav, 2022, Amphibians of Kokolopori: an introduction to the amphibian fauna of the Central Congolian Lowland Forests, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Amphibian & Reptile Conservation (e 301) 16 (1), pp. 35-70 : 62

Amnirana cf. albolabris (Hallowell, 1856)

Fig. 11E–F .

Area: All.

Season/survey: Wet (May 2018, Nov 2018), dry (Aug 2019, Jul 2020).

Material: CSB:Herp: RNBK 004–006, 011, 014, 015, 017, 024, 026, 030, 039, 042, 046–049, 053, 055, 060, 077, 079, 090, 097, 100, 102, 104, 106, 112, 166, 191, 425, 427–430, 476–478, 502–504, 525, 529, 553–560, 565, 566, 576, 607, 608, 650, 685, 708–710, 723–726, 745–747, 753–755, 835, 836, 838, 862–865; IVB-H-CD 18066–18068, 18083, 18084, 18171–18175, 18390.

Comments: This species belongs to the taxonomically unresolved A. albolabris species complex ( Jongsma et al. 2018), distributed mostly in Central Africa from Nigeria to Uganda ( Channing and Rödel 2019). The Kokolopori population probably belongs to the central Congolian evolutionary lineage. Some individuals have contrasting coloration with a dark dorsum, bright lips and spots on the flanks, and a distinctly marbled venter ( Fig. 11F ), a color pattern not known to us from other parts of Central Africa. However, most individuals are lighter and not as contrasting ( Fig. 11E ). This species was commonly found in most habitats, but especially in disturbed places near human settlements and along streams. This species does not seem to enter deeper primary forests. The tadpoles are contrastingly colored with black spots on a red background. The skin glands of tadpoles produce a poisonous secretion, making them unpalatable to most vertebrate predators ( Channing et al. 2012).

Figures

Fig. 11. Pipids (Hymenochirus, Xenopus), ranids (Amnirana), and a rhacophorid (Chiromantis). (A) Hymenochirus cf. boettgeri (male). (B) H. cf. boulengeri (male). (C) Xenopus pygmaeus (female). (D) X. pygmaeus, tadpole. (E) Amnirana cf. albolabris (male). (F) Amnirana cf. albolabris, dark morph with contrasting color pattern (male). (G) A. lepus (male). (H) Chiromantis cf. rufescens (male).