Leptodactylodon ornatus ornatus Amiet, 1971

Mapouyat, Lissa, Hirschfeld, Mareike, Rödel, Mark-Oliver, Liedtke, H. Christoph, Loader, Simon P., Gonwouo, L. Nono, Dahmen, Matthias, Doherty-Bone, Thomas M. & Barej, Michael F., 2014, The tadpoles of nine Cameroonian Leptodactylodon species (Amphibia, Anura, Arthroleptidae), Zootaxa 3765 (1), pp. 29-53 : 39

Leptodactylodon ornatus ornatus Amiet, 1971

Two L. ornatus ornatus tadpoles were found on Mount Manengouba: ZMB 78502 (two tadpoles, Gosner stages 25 & 32, Ebonemin, 5°1’6.2”N, 9°46’16.8”E, 1447 m, 9 October 2011). The two individuals were found in a small river surrounded by farmbush vegetation at 1447 m ( Fig. 2 ).

The description is based on the genotyped individual (ZMB 78502) at Gosner stage 32. Body length/total length ratio and description of tail tips was based on the non-genotyped specimen.

Morphology. Long slender tadpole with narrow and long muscular tail; body elliptical to almost parallel in dorsal and depressed in lateral view ( Fig. 9 a, b); body length 26.0% of total length; body height 44.6% of body length; body width 56.2% of body length; maximum body width on level of spiracle insertion; snout truncate in dorsal view; nostrils nearly rounded, situated lateroventrally; nostrils equidistant from eye and snout tip; eye diameter 13.1% of body length; inter-orbital distance slightly exceeds inter-nostril distance; tail fins narrow; dorsal fin originating posterior (5.7 mm) to tail base, slightly deeper than ventral fin, reaching deepest point slightly posterior to mid-tail; ventral fin narrow, originates on level with tail base, reaches deepest point near tail tip; tail tip rounded; tail axis broad and muscular; body height 82.9% of total tail height; maximum height of tail axis 61.4% of total tail height; vent tube dextral; lateral sacs present, extending from spiracle to end of body, covering lower two thirds of flanks; short sinister spiracle, translucent, opening lateral, not visible in dorsal view, originating slightly posterior to mid-body; mouth opening frontal; labial tooth formula 0/0; both jaw sheaths completely keratinized; upper jaw sheath distinctly and strongly serrated, narrow, almost rectangular, edges with large, caniniform projections; lower jaw distinctly but less serrated, more massive than upper jaw, slightly bent, a lateral pair of caniniform projections, median part without needle-like cusps ( Fig. 9 d); four distinct serrations abaxial to fangs; posterior lip large and broad bilobate, covered with 21 large and numerous small papillae; small papillae arranged along edge of the lower lip; large papillae arranged in two semicircular rows ( Fig. 9 c); short, straight to depressed w-shaped skin fold on lower lip, just posterior to lower jaw sheath; oral disc width 41.5% of body length; mouth width 37.0% of oral disc width.

The tadpole at Gosner stage 25 measured 45.7 mm total length (body length: 11.9 mm; tail length: 33.8 mm). The more developed individual (Gosner stage 32) had a body length of 13.0 mm (tail incomplete). Amiet (1980) gives the size of three metamorphs as 14–16 mm.

Coloration in preservation. Light to dark brown; dorsal parts of body and in particular tail axis mottled with larger dark dots and densely covered with smaller dark speckles, lighter towards tail tip; anterior half of tail axis with median, longitudinal dark line; venter lighter; dorsal fin and posterior-most part of ventral fin mottled with dark spots, otherwise, particularly anterior part of ventral tail fin translucent cream-white.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Habitats of Leptodactylodon tadpoles; a: small forest fragment behind Manengouba-Village, habitat of L. mertensi and L. ornatus ornatus, Mt. Manengouba, N 4 ° 57 ' 12.6 " E 9 ° 51 ' 33.36 ", 1093 m; b: mountainous forest, habitat of L. erythrogaster, Mt. Manengouba, N 4 ° 57 ' 12.6 " E 9 ° 51 ' 33.36 ", 2100 m; c: strongly degraded farmbush area, habitat of L. bicolor, Mt. Manengouba, near Pola N 5 ° 3 ' 27.78 " E 9 ° 50 ' 8.88 ", 1742 m; d: small forest fragment between farms, habitat of L. mertensi, Mt. Manengouba, near Nkack, N 5 ° 0 ' 46.5 " E 9 ° 46 ' 5.82 ", 1372 m. The tadpoles were caught hiding under stones in river parts with little current.

FIGURE 9. Dorsal (a) and lateral view (b) of Leptodactylodon ornatus ornatus with sketches of mouthpart in frontal view (c) and jaw sheaths with caniniform projections (d); scale bars: 1 mm.