The Pipidae are a

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

of primitive,

tongue The tongue is a muscular organ (anatomy), organ in the mouth of a typical tetrapod. It manipulates food for mastication and swallowing as part of the digestive system, digestive process, and is the primary organ of taste. The tongue's upper surfa ...

less

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

s. The 41 species in the family Pipidae are found in tropical

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

(genus ''Pipa'') and sub-Saharan

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

(the three other genera).

Description

Pipid frogs are highly aquatic and have numerous morphological modifications befitting their habitat. For example, the feet are completely webbed, the body is flattened, and a

lateral line The lateral line, also called the lateral line organ (LLO), is a system of sensory organs found in fish, used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. The sensory ability is achieved via modified epithelial ...

system is present in adults. In addition, pipids possess highly modified ears for producing and receiving sound under water. They lack a tongue or vocal cords, instead having bony rods in the larynx that help produce sound. They range from in body length.

Taxonomy

Family Pipidae * '' Hymenochirus'' - dwarf clawed frogs (4 species) * ''

Pipa The pipa, pípá, or p'i-p'a () is a traditional Chinese musical instrument, belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Sometimes called the "Chinese lute", the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets rang ...

'' - Surinam toads (7 species) * ''

Pseudhymenochirus Merlin's dwarf gray frog (''Pseudhymenochirus merlini''), or Merlin's clawed frog, is a species of frog in the family Pipidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Pseudhymenochirus''. It is found in southern Guinea-Bissau, western Guinea, and sout ...

'' - Merlin's dwarf gray frog or Merlin's clawed frog (1 species) * ''

Xenopus ''Xenopus'' () (Gk., ξενος, ''xenos''=strange, πους, ''pous''=foot, commonly known as the clawed frog) is a genus of highly aquatic frogs native to sub-Saharan Africa. Twenty species are currently described within it. The two best-known ...

'' - clawed frogs (29 species)Evans et al., 2015 ** Subgenus ''(

Silurana ''Silurana'' is a subgenus of frogs in the family Pipidae. They are closely related the clawed frog subgenus, ''Xenopus ''Xenopus'' () (Gk., ξενος, ''xenos''=strange, πους, ''pous''=foot, commonly known as the clawed frog) is a genus ...

)'' - common clawed frogs ** Subgenus ''(

)'' - tropical clawed frogs

Fossil record

The oldest fossil records of frogs more closely related to pipid frogs than to other extant frog families (

Pipimorpha Pipimorpha is an unranked clade containing all frogs which are more closely related to living Pipidae species than to living ''Rhinophrynus'' species. Members of this group are highly adapted to aquatic life. The oldest pipimorphs are '' Neusibat ...

) extends into the

Early Cretaceous The Early Cretaceous ( geochronological name) or the Lower Cretaceous (chronostratigraphic name), is the earlier or lower of the two major divisions of the Cretaceous. It is usually considered to stretch from 145 Ma to 100.5 Ma. Geology Pro ...

. The oldest known

crown group In phylogenetics, the crown group or crown assemblage is a collection of species composed of the living representatives of the collection, the most recent common ancestor of the collection, and all descendants of the most recent common ancestor. ...

pipids are '' Oumtkoutia'' and ''

Pachycentrata ''Pachycentrata'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric amphibian. ''Pachycentrata'' fossils have been found in the In Beceten Formation located in Tahoua, Niger. The fossils have been dated to the late/upper Coniacian to Santonian periods. These ...

'' from the Upper Cretaceous of Morocco and Niger, respectively. Included taxa after A. M. Aranciaga Rolando et al. 2019 * †'' Oumtkoutia'' Rage and Dutheil 2008

Aoufous Formation The Aoufous Formation is a geological formation that contains some of the vertebrate assemblage of the Kem Kem Group, of Late Cretaceous date.Cavin et al., 2010, p.391Dal Sasso, C., Maganuco, S., Buffetaut, E., Mendez, M.A., 2005. New information o ...

, Morocco, Late Cretaceous (

Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the ICS' geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous Series. An age is a unit of geochronology; it is a unit of time; the stage is a unit in the s ...

) * †''

Llankibatrachus ''Llankibatrachus'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric frogs in the family Pipidae. They are known from the Ypresian (Casamayoran) Huitrera Formation of Argentina. Description The type species and the only known species, ''Llankibatrachus true ...

'' Báez and Pugener 2003

Huitrera Formation The Huitrera Formation is a geological formation in the Neuquén Basin in northern Patagonian Argentina whose strata date back to the Early Eocene of the Paleogene, or Casamayoran in the South American land mammal age classification. Descriptio ...

, Argentina,

Eocene The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene' ...

* †''

'' Báez and Rage 2004 (= ''Pachybatrachus'' Báez and Rage, 1998)

In Beceten Formation The In Beceten Formation, also Beceten or Ibecten is a Coniacian to Santonian geologic formation in the Iullemmeden Basin of Niger. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation, although none have yet been re ...

, Niger, Late Cretaceous (

Coniacian The Coniacian is an age or stage in the geologic timescale. It is a subdivision of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or Upper Cretaceous Series and spans the time between 89.8 ± 1 Ma and 86.3 ± 0.7 Ma (million years ago). The Coniacian is preceded by t ...

) * †"''

Shelania ''Shelania'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric frogs that lived in South America during the Eocene. Its type species is ''Shelania pascuali''. Fossils of ''Shelania'' have been found in the Mustersan Vaca Mahuida and Laguna del Hunco Formation ...

" laurenti'' Baez and Pugener 1998 Argentina, Eocene * ''"Xenopus" romeri'' Estes 1975 Companhia National de Cimento Portland Quarry, Brazil,

Paleocene The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), E ...

* †''

Eoxenopoides ''Eoxenopoides'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric frogs. It is known from Banke, a Maastrichtian/Selandian crater lake mudstone in South Africa. See also * Prehistoric amphibian * List of prehistoric amphibians This list of prehistoric amphi ...

'' Haughton 1931 South Africa, Late Cretaceous (

Maastrichtian The Maastrichtian () is, in the ICS geologic timescale, the latest age (uppermost stage) of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or Upper Cretaceous Series, the Cretaceous Period or System, and of the Mesozoic Era or Erathem. It spanned the interval from ...

) * †''

Singidella ''Singidella'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric frog from the Eocene of Tanzania. It is a member of the family Pipidae, and is closely related to African dwarf frogs (''Hymenochirus'') and Merlin's dwarf gray frog (''Pseudohymenochirus''). ...

'' Báez and Harrison 2005 Tanzania, Eocene

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

* * {{Authority control Amphibian families Mesobatrachia Taxa named by John Edward Gray Extant Berriasian first appearances