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Afrixalus upembae

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Afrixalus upembae
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Hyperoliidae
Genus: Afrixalus
Species:
A. upembae
Binomial name
Afrixalus upembae
(Laurent, 1941)
Synonyms[2]
  • Megalixalus leptosomus upembae Laurent, 1941
  • Afrixalus leptosomus upembae (Laurent, 1941)
  • Hyperolius fulvovittatus upembae (Laurent, 1941)

Afrixalus upembae is a species of frog in the family Hyperoliidae. It is endemic to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and is known from the lower Katanga Province (=Shaba Province),[1][2][3][4] although its true distribution might be wider;[1] possibly reaching eastern Angola.[5] It belongs to the taxonomically unresolved "Afrixalus quadrivittatus complex",[1][3][4] and it is not even clear that it is a valid species.[1]

Description

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The body is relatively elongate.[5] The dorsum is dark brown and has three light stripes that merge on the snout. The brown dorsal bands have diffuse borders.[3][4][5]

Habitat and conservation

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Afrixalus upembae lives in moist savanna[1][5] and probably breeds in small pools.[1] The type series consists more of one thousand specimens, suggesting it is an abundant species.[1] However, the type series does not contain any mature males, possibly because juveniles and females might use different daytime hiding places than males.[6]

Major threats to this species are unknown, as is its recent population status. It can be found in Upemba National Park.[1]

Lake Upemba in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Lake Upemba in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The eponymous Lake Upemba is the type locality of Afrixalus upembae

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2014). "Afrixalus upembae". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2014: e.T56082A18371811. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-1.RLTS.T56082A18371811.en. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b Frost, Darrel R. (2018). "Afrixalus upembae (Laurent, 1941)". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
  3. ^ a b c "Afrixalus upembae". AmphibiaWeb. University of California, Berkeley. 2008. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
  4. ^ a b c "Afrixalus upembae (Laurent, 1941)". African Amphibians. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
  5. ^ a b c d Perret, J.-L. (1976). "Identité de quelques Afrixalus (Amphibia, Salientia, Hyperoliidae)". Bulletin de la Société Neuchâteloise des Sciences Naturelles. 99: 19–28.
  6. ^ Pickersgill, Martin (2007). "A redefinition of Afrixalus fulvovittatus (Cope, 1860) and Afrixalus vittiger (Peters, 1876) (Amphibia, Anura Hyperoliidae)". African Journal of Herpetology. 56 (1): 23–37. Bibcode:2007AfJH...56...23P. doi:10.1080/21564574.2007.9635551.