Euphlyctis adolfi (Gunther, 1860)

Common Names

Bangladesh Skittering Frog (Zug, 2022, Smithson. Contrib. Zool., 653: 17).

Adolf's Speckled Frog (Safaei-Mahroo, Ghaffari, and Niamir, 2023, Zootaxa, 5279: 24).

Adolf Skipper Frog (Dinesh, Radhakrishnan, Deepak, and Kulkarni, 2023, Fauna India Checklist, vers. 5.0 : 3).

Seistan Skittering Frog (Euphlyctis cyanophyctis seistanica: Khan, 2002, Bull. Chicago Herpetol. Soc., 37: 160).

Spiny Skittering Frog (Euphlyctis cyanophyctis microspinulata: Khan, 2002, Bull. Chicago Herpetol. Soc., 37: 160).

Distribution

Southern Iran (Hormozgan, Kerman, and Sistan va Baluchistan provinces), southern Afghanistan, and Pakistan and through India, low elevations and foothills of the Himalayas and throughout Bangladesh into Mizoram, northeastern India, Nepal, and Bhutan below 2500 m elevation; likely to extend into Rakhine state, Myanmar. 

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan

Likely/Controversially Present: Myanmar

Comment

See comment under Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis for access to literature (before 2022) when this species was confused with that one. Removed from the synonymy of Rana cyanophlyctis and placed as the senior name for Euphlictis kalagramensis by Dufresnes and Litvinchuk, 2022, Zool. J. Linn. Soc., 195: 704, where it had been placed by Boulenger, 1882, Cat. Batr. Sal. Coll. Brit. Mus., Ed. 2: 17. Confused with Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis, and the sister taxon of Euphlyctis mudigere + (Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis + Euphlyctis ehrenbergii) according to the original publication of Euphlyctis kalisgraminensis. Ali, Javid, Hussain, Hafeez-ur-Rehman, Chabber, and Hemmatzadeh, 2020, MtDNA, Part B, 5: 1227–1232, reported the species in Punjab, Pakistan, confirmed by mtDNA analysis. Lalronunga, Vanramliana, Lalrinchhana, Vanlalhrima, Sailo, Lalnunhlua, Sailo, Zosangliana, Lalhmangaiha, and Lalhmingliani, 2020, Sci. Vision, 20: 106–117, provided a record from Mizoram, northeastern India, based on genetic barcode analysis. Khatiwada, Wang, Zhao, Xie, and Jiang, 2021, Asian Herpetol. Res., 12: 1–35, implied that previous records of Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis from Nepal are based on this species. Decemson, Gouda, Lalbiakzuala, Lalmuansanga, Hmar, Mathipi, and Lalremsanga, 2021, J. Threatened Taxa, 13: 17918–17929, provided the record for Dampa Tiger Reserve, Mamit District, Mizoram, India. In the Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis group of Dinesh, Channakeshavamurthy, Deepak, Ghosh, and Deuti, 2021, Zootaxa, 4990: 329–353, who implied that the Pakistan requires verification. Akram, Rais, López-Hervas, Tarvin, Saeed, Bolnick, and Cannatella, 2021, Ecol. Evol., 11: 14175–14216, provided genetically-confirmed records from Rawalpindi District, Punjab Province, Pakistan, as well as discussing the systematics of the species, which, as regards populations assigned to Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis in Iran is problematic (DRF). Rais, Ahmed, Sajjad, Akram, Saeed, Hamid, and Abid, 2021, ZooKeys, 1062: 157–175, included this species in an identification key to the amphibian species of Pakistan as well as providing a photograph. Zug, 2022, Smithson. Contrib. Zool., 653: 17, discussed identification, habitat, and possible range in Myanmar, and noted that at least some of the records of Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis from Myanmar are likely of this species. Dufresnes, Mahony, Prasad, Kamei, Masroor, Khan, Al-Johany, Gautam, Gupta, Borkin, Melnikov, Rosanov, Skorinov, Borzée, Jablonski, and Litvinchuk, 2022, Syst. Biodiversity, 20 (2102686): 1–25, discussed the systematics of this species and its phylogenetic place within the genus as well as providing a dot map. Safaei-Mahroo, Ghaffari, and Niamir, 2023, Zootaxa, 5279: 1–112, provided for Iran an identification key including this species, photographs, habitat, conservation threats and Red List recommendation, a review of the literature, as well as dot and modeled distribution maps. Reported (as Euphlyctis kalasgramensis) from central Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, northern Pakistan by Majid, Azim, Nawaz, and Ud Din, 2023, Asian J. Res. Zool., 6: 56. Safaei-Mahroo, Ghaffari, and Anderson, 2025, In Heatwole, Das, and King (eds.), Amphibian Biology. Volume 11, Part 8 (Status of Conservation and Decline of Amphibians: Eastern Hemisphere): 195–233, provided photographs and reported on the conservation, morphology, systematics, and distribution of the species in Iran. Mohammadi, Khajeh, and Ghorbani, 2025, Taxonomy and Biosystematics, 16: 57–72, reported on mtDNA phylogenetics, noting three matrilines within Iran and noting discordance with morphology in southeastern Iran. They also discussed the status of Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis seistanica and Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis microspinulata in Iran, ultimately returning these populations of Euphlyctus adolfi microspinulata. See comment under Euphlyctis cyanophlyctis for relevant literature. 

External links:

Please note: these links will take you to external websites not affiliated with the American Museum of Natural History. We are not responsible for their content.

• For access to general information see Wikipedia
• For additional sources of general information from other websites search Google
• For access to relevant technical literature search Google Scholar
• For images search CalPhoto Images and Google Images
• To search the NIH genetic sequence database, see GenBank
• For additional information see AmphibiaWeb report
• For information on conservation status and distribution see the IUCN Redlist
• For information on distribution, habitat, and conservation see the Map of Life
• For related information on conservation and images as well as observations see iNaturalist