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Issue: Vol. 5512 No. 1: 18 Sept. 2024
Type: Article
Published: 2024-09-18
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5512.1.1
Page range: 1-21
Abstract views: 1157
PDF downloaded: 18

A new species of Dainty Frog (Anura: Pyxicephalidae: Cacosternum) and the first endemic anuran to the Cederberg region of South Africa

Ghent University; B-9000; Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 25; Belgium; Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Postboks 8900; NO-7491; Trondheim; Norway
South African National Biodiversity Institute; Private Bag X7 Claremont; Cape Town; South Africa
P.O. Box 800; Beach Road 37; Mouille Point; Cape Town; South Africa
Port Elizabeth Museum (Bayworld); P.O. Box 13147; Humewood 6013; Gqeberha; South Africa; Department of Nature Conservation Management; Natural Resource Science and Management Cluster; Faculty of Science; George Campus; Nelson Mandela University; George; South Africa
Amphibia endemic conservation arid southwestern Cape

Abstract

Within the genus Cacosternum, the species C. capense and C. namaquense form a clade defined by their robust morphology, large size, and distinct dorsolateral glands. In this study, we describe a third member of the group endemic to the Cederberg region of South Africa. Specimens from this area have historically been assigned to C. karooicum, but here we show that this population is genetically unrelated. Using a combination of molecular, morphological, and acoustic data, we provide evidence to show that the Cederberg population of C. karooicum represents an undescribed species within the C. capense group. The new species can be diagnosed from its closest phylogenetic relatives, C. capense and C. namaquense, by the absence of a dark streak running downwards from the pupil into the iris, the presence of large rictal glands that form an uninterrupted arc with the angle of the jaw, heart-shaped palmar tubercles, and an advertisement call with a dominant frequency below 2 kHz. We further discuss their natural history, distribution, and conservation.

 

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