Ptychadena tellinii (Peracca, 1904)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Anura > Family: Ptychadenidae > Genus: Ptychadena > Species: Ptychadena tellinii

Phrynobatrachus tellinii Peracca, 1904, Boll. Mus. Zool. Anat. Comp. Univ. Torino, 19 (467): 4. Syntypes: 2 specimens, including MSNT 504 (1 specimen), according to Gavetti and Andreone, 1993, Cat. Mus. Reg. Sci. Nat., Torino, 10: 85. Syntypes are MSNG 37461 and MZUT An 504 according to Largen, 2001, Tropical Zool., 14: 343. Type locality: "Eritrea . . . . percorso Massaua-Cheren, passando per 'Asmara. . . . senza località determinata"; (= Eritrea . . . . between Massaua and Cheren, . . . . without a definite locality).

Rana schubotzi Sternfeld, 1917, in Mecklenburg (ed.), Ergebnisse der Zweit. Deutschen Zentral-Afr.-Exped. 1910–1911, Zool.: 493. Holotype: SMF 6242 (formerly 1051. 1a) according to Mertens, 1967, Senckenb. Biol., 48(A): 46. Type locality: "Fort Crampel", Central African Republic. Synonymy by Largen, 2001, Tropical Zool., 14: 343.

Rana cornii Scortecci, 1929, Atti Soc. Ital. Sci. Nat. Mus. Civ. Stor. Nat. Milano, 68: 183. Syntypes: MSNM 593–594 (4 specimens), lost in World War II according to Perret, 1985, in Frost (ed.), Amph. Species WorldJ: 487, in error, apparently; BMNH 1930.2.1.1 (exchanged from MSNM), according to Largen, 1997, Tropical Zool., 10: 72. MSNM Am 141 (2 specimens) are surviving syntypes according to Blackburn and Scali, 2014, Herpetol. Monogr., 28: 32, who discussed the material. Type localities: "Adamò" and "Pozzi di Guarabà" (surviving syntypes), Eritrea. Synonymy by Largen, 1997, Tropical Zool., 10: 72.

Rana huguettae Inger, 1968, Explor. Parc Natl. Garamba, Miss. H. de Saeger, 52: 59. Holotype: RFI 3317; not located in MRAC or IRSNB by Lang, 1990, Doc. Trav., Inst. R. Sci. Nat. Belg., 59: 12; presumably in FMNH. Type locality: "Ndelele, Parc National de la Garamba, Congo [=Dem. Rep. Congo], at 900 m". Synonymy by Perret, 1981, Bull. Soc. Neuchatel. Sci. Nat., 104: 53–57.

Ptychadena huguettae — Amiet, 1974, Ann. Fac. Sci. Cameroun, 18: 114.

Ptychadena schubotzi — Perret, 1981, Bull. Soc. Neuchatel. Sci. Nat., 104: 53–54; Dubois, 1987 "1986", Alytes, 5: 56; by implication.

Rana (Ptychadena) schubotzi — Dubois, 1981, Monit. Zool. Ital., N.S., Suppl., 15: 233, by implication.

Rana (Euphlyctis) cornii — Dubois, 1981, Monit. Zool. Ital., N.S., Suppl., 15: 240.

Euphlyctis cornii — Poynton and Broadley, 1985, Ann. Natal Mus., 27: 124, by implication; Dubois, 1992, Bull. Mens. Soc. Linn. Lyon, 61: 315.

Occidozyga (Euphlyctis) cornii — Dubois, 1987 "1986", Alytes, 5: 59.

Ptychadena (Ptychadena) schubotzi — Dubois, 1992, Bull. Mens. Soc. Linn. Lyon, 61: 316.

Ptychadena tellini — Largen, 2001, Tropical Zool., 14: 343.

Common Names

Tellini's Grass Frog (Largen and Spawls, 2010, Amph. Rept. Ethiopia Eritrea: 170; Channing and Rödel, 2019, Field Guide Frogs & Other Amph. Afr.: 330). 

Tellini's Rocket Frog (Spawls, Mazuch, and Mohammad, 2023, Handb. Amph. Rept. NE Afr.: 105).

Red Rocket Frog (Spawls, Mazuch, and Mohammad, 2023, Handb. Amph. Rept. NE Afr.: 105).

Peracca's River Frog (Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 104).

Central Grassland Frog (Ptychadena schubotzi: Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 106).

Eritrea Five-fingered Frog (Euphlyctis cornii [no longer recognized]: Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 98).

Distribution

Western Eritrea, western Ethiopia and northeastern Dem. Rep. Congo west in savanna to Guinea, southern Mali, Burkina Faso, and Sierra Leone; expected in southern Chad, Gambia, Liberia, South Sudan, and southeastern Sudan.

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of the, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo

Likely/Controversially Present: Chad, Gambia, Liberia, South Sudan, Sudan

Comment

Discussed by Perret, 1981, Bull. Soc. Neuchatel. Sci. Nat., 104: 53–57. See Schiøtz, 1964, Vidensk. Medd. Dansk Naturhist. Foren., 127: 22, 45 (as Ptychadena sp. I). See Amiet, 1974, Ann. Fac. Sci. Cameroun, 18: 114 (as Ptychadena huguettae). See discussion by Largen, 1997, Tropical Zool., 10: 72. Rödel, 2000, Herpetofauna W. Afr., 1: 110–114, provided an account. Padial and De la Riva, 2004, Rev. Esp. Herpetol., 18: 96, suggested that this species will be found in southern Mauritania, although  Sánchez-Vialas, Calvo-Revuelta, and Márquez, 2017, ZooKeys, 673: 125–133, did not report it there. Greenbaum and Carr, 2005, Sci Pap. Nat. Hist. Mus. Univ. Kansas, 37: 10–11, reported the species from Upper Niger National Park, Guinea. Nago, Grell, Sinsin, and Rödel, 2006, Salamandra, 42: 93–108, provided a record for Benin. Emms, Jambang, Bah, Mankali, Rödel, and Barnett, 2005, Herpetol. Bull., London, 94: 6–16, suggested that the species is expected to occur in Gambia although not so far recorded there. See account, photograph, and map for Ethiopia by Largen and Spawls, 2010, Amph. Rept. Ethiopia Eritrea: 170–171. Channing, Rödel, and Channing, 2012, Tadpoles of Africa: 314–315, provided information on comparative larval morphology. Kassie Teme, 2016, J. Zool. Stud., 3(4): 1–6, reported a population from Warki (Kessa), northwestern Ethiopia. Ayoro, Segniagbeto, Hema, Penner, Oueda, Dubois, Rödel, Kabré, and Ohler, 2020, Zoosystema, 42: 547–582, discussed records, identification, and habitat in Burkina Faso. Segniagbeto, Ohler, Rödel, Luiselli, and Dubois, 2024, Zoosystema, 46: 659, provided a brief account for Togo, discussing habitat, distribution, conservation status, and identification. Spawls, Mazuch, and Mohammad, 2023, Handb. Amph. Rept. NE Afr.: 105, provided an account addressing identification, natural history, conservation status, and range, including a dot map for northeastern Africa. 

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