Phrynobatrachus gutturosus (Chabanaud, 1921)

Segniagbeto, Gabriel Hoinsoudé, Ohler, Annemarie, Rödel, Mark-Oliver, Luiselli, Luca & Dubois, Alain, 2024, Amphibians of Togo: taxonomy, distribution and conservation status, Zoosystema 46 (25), pp. 631-670 : 652

Phrynobatrachus gutturosus (Chabanaud, 1921)

( Fig. 11C )

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — Togo • 1 ♂; Diguengue ; ZMB 77916 .

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL. — Côte d’Ivoire • 5 ♂, 10 ♀; Lamto ; MNHN-RA-1993.7962, MNHN-RA-2000.3671, MNHN-RA-2000.3672, MNHN-RA-2000.5361, MNHN-RA-2000.5581, MNHN-RA-1979.5693-5695, MNHN-RA-1979.5697, MNHN-RA-1979.5698, MNHN-RA-1993.7960, MNHN-RA-1993.7967, MNHN-RA-2000.5358, MNHN-RA-2000.5578, MNHN-RA-2000.5579 .

Guinea • 3 ♂, 7 ♀; Nimba; MNHN-RA-1952.0144-A-144-E, MNHN-RA-1970.0101, MNHN-RA-1970.0104, MNHN-RA-1970.0105, MNHN-RA-1970.0108 .

DESCRIPTION. — Small (SVL 15.1-17.8 mm ♂, 17.4-21.7 mm ♀), slender species. Snout pointed, protruding beyond mouth slit. Head very small, longer than broad (HW 27-34% SVL; HL 34- 42% SVL). Tympanum indistinct. Tibia short (TL 48-56% SVL). Webbing absent or rudimentary, all phalanges free. Upper snout, loreal region and interorbital space smooth; back with flat glandular warts; flanks smooth; dorsal side of forearm, tarsus, tibia and thigh smooth; ventral and posterior part of thighs smooth; throat, chest, and belly in females and juveniles smooth.

COLOURATION. — The dorsal colouration is brown with darker dorsal warts. The flanks, the loreal and tympanic regions are brown with some dark spots. The dorsal parts of the forearm, tarsus, tibia and thigh shows light brown transverse bars. The back of the thigh has light brown longitudinal bands. The chest, belly, ventral thigh and palm are whitish.

SEXUAL DIMORPHISM. — The males are smaller than females and have a black throat and a subgular vocal sac with glandular folds, bordered laterally by longitudinal folds.

HABITATS AND DISTRIBUTION. — Phrynobatrachus gutturosus has forest and savannah populations, especially in gallery forests ( Rödel 2000), and consists of a complex of cryptic species ( Zimkus et al. 2010). Bourgat (1979) reported the presence of the species in Togo. Segniagbeto et al. (2007) could not examine Togolese P. gutturosus . A presumed record, MNHN-RA-2000.3684-3687, collected in Kloto and registered under the name P. gutturosus , in fact proved to be a P. latifrons . Further work is needed to establish the distribution of the species in Togo.

Figures

FIG. 11. — Representatives of anuran species from Togo in life: A, Phrynobatrachus calcaratus (Peters, 1863) (Kalaré); B, Phrynobatrachus francisci Boulenger, 1912 (Mango); C, Phrynobatrachus gutturosus (Chabanaud, 1921) (Assoukoko); D, Phrynobatrachus latifrons (Ahl, 1924) (Akloa); E, Phrynobatrachus natalensis (Smith, 1849) (Koui); F, Phrynobatrachus plicatus (Günther, 1859) (Assoukoko).