Arthroleptis wahlbergii Smith, 1849

Class: Amphibia > Order: Anura > Family: Arthroleptidae > Subfamily: Arthroleptinae > Genus: Arthroleptis > Species: Arthroleptis wahlbergii

Arthroleptis wahlbergii Smith, 1849, Illust. Zool. S. Afr., 3 (Appendix): 24. Holotype: BMNH 55.11.25.17 according to Laurent, 1985, in Frost (ed.), Amph. Species World: 16. Museum records give 1858.11.25.17. Type locality: "interior of Southern Africa"; given in error as "Cape of Good Hope" (outside of the known range) by Boulenger, 1882, Cat. Batr. Sal. Coll. Brit. Mus., Ed. 2: 117. D. Blackburn (personal commun. 14 May 2009) suggests that the type locality is likely inland of Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.

Arthroleptis dalenei Hoffman, 1940, Soöl. Navors. Nas. Mus. Bloemfontein, 1: 97. Holotype: NMB A2087, by original designation. Type locality: "Mazongwaan Forest, Greytown, [KwaZulu-]Natal", Rep. South Africa. Synonymy by Loveridge, 1954, Ann. Natal Mus., 13: 97; Poynton, 1964, Ann. Natal Mus., 17: 160.

Arthroleptis (Arthroleptis) wahlbergiLaurent, 1941 "1940", Rev. Zool. Bot. Afr., 34: 85.

Arthroleptis wahlbergii wahlbergiiLoveridge, 1954, Ann. Natal Mus., 13: 97.

Arthroleptis wahlbergii daleneiLoveridge, 1954, Ann. Natal Mus., 13: 97.

Arthroleptis wahlbergii wageriLoveridge, 1954, Ann. Natal Mus., 13: 97.

English Names

Wahlberg's Forest Frog (Hewitt, 1937, Guide Vert. Fauna E. Cape Province, Rept. Amph. Fishes: 104).

Bush Squeaker (Wager, 1965, Frogs S. Afr.: 175; Passmore and Carruthers, 1979, S. Afr. Frogs: 206; Channing, 2001, Amph. Cent. S. Afr.: 48; Du Preez and Carruthers, 2009, Compl. Guide Frogs S. Afr.: 86).

Wahlberg's Humus Frog (Van Dijk, 1978, J. Herpetol. Assoc. Afr., 17: 16).

Wahlberg's Frog (Van Dijk, 1978, J. Herpetol. Assoc. Afr., 17: 16).

Distribution

Mist-belt, scarp, and coastal forest from extreme northeastern coastal plain of South Africa south along the coast to coastal Transkei (Eastern Cape Province) and coastal and midland areas of KwaZulu-Natal, Rep. South Africa; likely to be found in adjacent Mozambique. 

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: South Africa

Likely/Controversially Present: Mozambique

Endemic: South Africa

Comment

See accounts (in the sense of including Arthroleptis wageri as a synonym) by Poynton, 1964, Ann. Natal Mus., 17: 160–161 (who rejected subspecies), Lambiris, 1988, Lammergeyer, 39: 116–117, Channing, 2001, Amph. Cent. S. Afr.: 48, Pickersgill, 2007, Frog Search: 311–313, and Du Preez and Carruthers, 2009, Compl. Guide Frogs S. Afr.: 86–87. Frétey, 2008, Alytes, 25: 99–172, summarized the literature. Tolley, Conradie, Harvey, Measey, and Blackburn, 2018, Afr. Zool., 53: 83–97, removed Arthroleptis wageri from synonymy, and discussed the molecular evidence for a complex biogeography. Du Preez and Carruthers, 2009, Compl. Guide Frogs S. Afr.: 86–87, provided an account (identification, conservation status, call, range, and habitat). Phaka, Netherlands, Kruger, and Du Preez, 2017, Bilingual Field Guide Frogs Zululand: 19, provided a photograph, Zululand regional map, and a brief account of life history and identification. Channing and Rödel, 2019, Field Guide Frogs & Other Amph. Afr.: 264–265, provided a brief account, photograph, and range map. Buschau, Jordaan, Conradie, and Daniels, 2022, J. Biogeograph., 49: 445–459, reported on mtDNA phylogeography. 

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