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| Stumpffia bishopi Rakotoarison, Glaw, Rasolonjatovo, Razafindraibe, Vences & Scherz, 2022 |
Abstract
The stump-toed frogs of the Madagascar-endemic genus Stumpffia are mostly diminutive in size, but there is one group of comparatively large frogs within the genus, which we herein refer to as the Stumpffia hara species group. Each of the four known members of this species group is endemic to a single location of deciduous dry forest with exposed karstic limestone rock. Here, we report on the discovery of members of this species group on Montagne d’Ambre, a rainforest-covered extinct volcano in the North of Madagascar that has a rich Stumpffia fauna but has been thought to lack members of the S. hara species group until now. We found two members of the species group, one at the peak, and one in transitional and dry deciduous forest on the west and northern slopes of the mountain. The high-elevation species is new to science, and we here describe it as Stumpffia bishopi sp. nov. It occupies a highly distinct position in the phylogeny of these frogs, characterized by ≥ 9.8% uncorrected pairwise distance from all other nominal Stumpffia in a fragment of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene. It is also the smallest of the members of the S. hara species group. Our genetic results show that the low-elevation species is Stumpffia megsoni, constituting a range expansion of that species and considerably expanding our understanding of its morphology and ecology. We report its advertisement call for the first time. Our results highlight the importance of continued surveys of even well-sampled localities, with special attention on the high elevation sites of northern massifs and collection of voucher specimens, and how much there still remains to understand about even the largest of Madagascar’s small frogs.
Key Words: New species, Stumpffia bishopi sp. nov., phylogeny, montane rainforest, body size, bioacoustics
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| Stumpffia bishopi sp. nov. in life a–c. Holotype ZSM 106/2018 in a. Dorsolateral view; b. Dorsal view; c. Ventral view; d–f. Paratype UADBA 60224 (ex-ZSM 108/2018) in d. Anterodorsolateral view; e. Dorsal view; f. Ventral view. The orange spot on the left ventral thigh in (f) is probably a trombiculid mite. Not to scale. |
Stumpffia bishopi sp. nov.
Diagnosis: A moderately small species of Stumpffia from high elevation of Montagne d’Ambre in northern Madagascar. It is assigned to the Stumpffia hara species group on the basis of its molecular phylogenetic affinities. The new species is diagnosed by the unique combination of the following characters: (1) Small-sized species (SVL 14.2–16.6 mm); (2) manus with four fingers (first finger slightly reduced in length) and pes with five toes (first toe not reduced in length); (3) enlarged inner metacarpal tubercle; (4) terminal phalanges of fingers without enlarged discs, those of toes with very slightly enlarged discs; (5) relative hand length HAL/SVL 0.38; (6) relative foot length FOTL/SVL 0.62; (7) dorsum smooth; (8) supratympanic fold distinct; (9) colouration in life dorsally various shades of brown, ventrally with white and black flecks on a taupe to burnt orange background.
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Etymology: The species name is a patronym honouring the late Phil Bishop, Professor Emeritus at the University of Otago, who dedicated his life to research on and protection of amphibians. He was an inspirational and incredibly enthusiastic colleague, and we were sorry to lose him far too soon.
Distribution and conservation status: Stumpffia bishopi sp. nov. is known only from the Montagne d’Ambre, northern Madagascar, at high elevations of ca 1330–1480 m above sea level (Fig. 4). The conservation status of the species is in line with other endemics of Montagne d’Ambre: it is known from a single threat-defined location, the protected area of Montagne d’Ambre National Park. Although the extent of occurrence is small enough to qualify for the Critically Endangered category, there are only mild on-going declines to the extent or quality of the habitat, and no known fluctuations in population size or distribution. A change in the protected area’s status would jeopardise the survival of the species, however, so we conservatively recommend listing it as Near Threatened.
Andolalao Rakotoarison, Frank Glaw, Safidy M. Rasolonjatovo, Jary H. Razafindraibe, Miguel Vences and Mark D. Scherz. 2022. Discovery of Frogs of the Stumpffia hara species group (Microhylidae, Cophylinae) on Montagne d’Ambre in northern Madagascar, with Description of A New Species. Evolutionary Systematics. 6(1): 21-33. DOI: 10.3897/evolsyst.6.76382
