Tomopterna tandyi Channing and Bogart, 1996

Class: Amphibia > Order: Anura > Family: Pyxicephalidae > Subfamily: Cacosterninae > Genus: Tomopterna > Species: Tomopterna tandyi

Tomopterna tandyi Channing and Bogart, 1996, S. Afr. J. Zool., 31: 80. Holotype: PEM A-2283, by original designation. Type locality: "Bedford in the Eastern Cape, South Africa (32° 42′ S, 26° 04′ E)".

English Names

Tandy's Sand Frog (Channing, 2004, in Minter et al. (eds.), Atlas Frogs S. Afr. Lesotho and Swaziland: 328; Channing and Howell, 2006, Amph. E. Afr.: 332; Du Preez and Carruthers, 2009, Compl. Guide Frogs S. Afr.: 446; Du Preez and Carruthers, 2017, Frogs S. Afr., Compl. Guide: 474).

Distribution

Found in a broad band from the Eastern Cape coast between Port Elizabeth and the Kei River mouth, northwards to the highlands around the Vaal River and Pietersburg, Rep. South Africa; north and west to Grootfontein and Hardap in Namibia to southern Angola (see comment); possibly in Lesotho, Eswatini, Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Zambia; another poorly understood range segment through Tanzania and Kenya. 

Comment

A tetraploid species, likely of hybrid origin between Tomopterna cryptotis and Tomopterna delalandii, according to the original publication. Channing and Howell, 2006, Amph. E. Afr.: 332–333, provided an account and noted that this species is indistinguishable morphologically from Tomopterna cryptotis and Tomopterna delalandii and that many of the records of Tomopterna cryptotis in many countries may actually refer to Tomopterna tandyi. See accounts by Channing, 2004, in Minter et al. (eds.), Atlas Frogs S. Afr. Lesotho and Swaziland: 328–329, Pickersgill, 2007, Frog Search: 116–117, and Du Preez and Carruthers, 2009, Compl. Guide Frogs S. Afr.: 446–447. Bates and Haacke, 2003, Navors. Nas. Mus. Bloemfontein, 19: 141, suggested the possible presence of this species in Lesotho. Channing, Rödel, and Channing, 2012, Tadpoles of Africa: 360–361, provided information on comparative larval morphology. Marques, Ceríaco, Blackburn, and Bauer, 2018, Proc. California Acad. Sci., Ser. 4, 65 (Suppl. II): 155, provided a brief discussion of the literature. Baptista, Conradie, Vaz Pinto, and Branch, 2019, In Huntley, Russo, Lages, and Ferrand (eds.), Biodiversity in Angola: 258, noted specimens in extreme northern Namibia adjacent to Angola, suggesting its eventual discovery there. Phaka, Netherlands, Kruger, and Du Preez, 2017, Bilingual Field Guide Frogs Zululand: 74, provided a photograph, Zululand regional map, and a brief account of life history and identification. See Wilson and Channing, 2019, Zootaxa, 4609: 225–246, who provided a range map and a phylogenetic tree. Spawls, Wasonga, and Drewes, 2019, Amph. Kenya: 36, provided a photograph, range map, and brief characterization. Channing and Rödel, 2019, Field Guide Frogs & Other Amph. Afr.: 382–383, provided a brief account, photograph, and range map.  

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.