''Nectophrynoides viviparus'' is a species of

toad Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands. A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scientif ...

in the family

Bufonidae {{Cat main, Toad This category contains both species commonly called toads, and the true toads from the family Bufonidae {{Cat main, Toad This category contains both species commonly called toads, and the true toads from the family Bufonidae {{Cat m ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

. Common names robust forest toad and Morogoro tree toad have been coined for it.

Description

''Nectophrynoides viviparus'' is a robust toad which reaches an adult length of . The skin is smooth and has many small mucous glands. The

paratoid gland The parotoid gland (alternatively, paratoid gland) is an external skin gland on the back, neck, and shoulder of toads and some frogs and salamanders. It can secrete a number of milky alkaloid substances (depending on the species) known collective ...

s are prominent just behind the eyes and nearby are circular

tympani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally ...

(eardrums). It also has large glands on its limbs which usually contrast in colour with the rest of the skin. The digits on the hands and feet are partially webbed. Some individuals are black with white markings, others are grey, green or dull red. In 2011, a new species of toad, '' Callulina meteora'', was described from the mountains of Tanzania and has similarly large, contrastingly coloured glands on its limbs.

Distribution and habitat

This species is known from the

Uluguru Mountains The Uluguru mountains are a mountain range in eastern Tanzania, named after the Luguru tribe. The main portion of the Uluguru mountains is a ridge running roughly north-south and rising to altitude at its highest point. On the main Uluguru rang ...

and

Udzungwa Mountains The Udzungwa Mountains are a mountain range in south-central Tanzania. The mountains are mostly within Iringa Region, south of Tanzania's capital Dodoma. The Udzungwa Mountains are part of the Eastern Arc Mountains, and are home to a biodiverse ...

in eastern and southern Tanzania. It occurs in wooded areas, among bamboos and in grassland at the edges of forests at an altitude of between above sea level.

Biology

''Nectophrynoides viviparus'' is a terrestrial species and is

ovoviviparous Ovoviviparity, ovovivipary, ovivipary, or aplacental viviparity is a term used as a "bridging" form of reproduction between egg-laying oviparous and live-bearing viviparous reproduction. Ovoviviparous animals possess embryos that develop insi ...

, which implies that it does not require a body of water in which to reproduce. Fertilisation is internal and the eggs develop through the larval stage inside the mother's oviduct, eventually emerging as fully formed juvenile toads.

Status

It is found as several separate populations in an area of about . It is threatened by habitat loss caused by agricultural activity, wood collection, and human habitations, especially at lower altitudes. Although relatively common, populations in general appear to be declining.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2053640

viviparus ''Viviparus'', common name the river snails, is a genus of large, freshwater snails with an operculum, aquatic gastropod mollusks.Bouchet, P. (2014). Viviparus Montfort, 1810. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at http://www ...

Frogs of Africa Amphibians of Tanzania Endemic fauna of Tanzania Amphibians described in 1905 Taxa named by Gustav Tornier Taxonomy articles created by Polbot