''Ptychadena guibei'' is a species of

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

in the family Ptychadenidae. It is found in northeastern and eastern

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

, the

Caprivi Strip The Caprivi Strip, also known simply as Caprivi, is a geographic salient protruding from the northeastern corner of Namibia. It is surrounded by Botswana to the south and Angola and Zambia to the north. Namibia, Botswana and Zambia meet at a s ...

of northeastern

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

, northern

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalaha ...

, northwestern and eastern

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

, southern

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeas ...

, and northern

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

. The specific name ''guibei'' honours Jean Guibé, a French zoologist and herpetologist. Common names Guibe's yellow-bellied grass frog, Guibe's grass frog, Guibe's grassland frog, and Guibe's ridge frog have been coined for it.

Description

Adult males from the

Upemba National Park Upemba National Park is a large national park in Haut-Lomami, Lualaba Province & Haut-Katanga Province (formerly in Katanga Province) of the southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire. Geography At the time of the creation of Upem ...

measure and adult females in snout–vent length; the maximum sizes in the original

species description A species description is a formal description of a newly discovered species, usually in the form of a scientific paper. Its purpose is to give a clear description of a new species of organism and explain how it differs from species that have be ...

were for males and females, respectively. The body and the limbs are moderately slender. The head is pointed with a strongly projecting snout. The tympanum is distinct. The dorsum has three pairs of longitudinal skin folds anteriorly and four to five pairs posteriorly. The finger and toe tips are bluntly rounded. The toes are about two-thirds webbed. The dorsal colouration consists of rows of black, oblong spots and a broad mid-dorsal light band, with a more or less distinct light vertebral line. The

tibia The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it connects ...

have black crossbars. Males have paired

vocal sac The vocal sac is the flexible membrane of skin possessed by most male frogs and toads. The purpose of the vocal sac is usually as an amplification of their mating or advertisement call. The presence or development of the vocal sac is one way ...

s and nuptial pads made of cream-colored or dusky velvety c1usters of spinules.

Habitat and conservation

''Ptychadena guibei'' occurs in moist grassland and

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...

; it can be common in

dambo A dambo is a class of complex shallow wetlands in central, southern and eastern Africa, particularly in Zambia, Malawi and Zimbabwe. They are generally found in higher rainfall flat plateau areas and have river-like branching forms which in themsel ...

s. It is generally an upland species, although its range extends to the coast in Mozambique. Breeding takes place in shallow temporary pans and pools where males call from concealed positions close to water. It is a common species that is unlikely to face more than local threats. It is present in the

(Democratic Republic of Congo) and probably in many other protected areas.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q770267 guibei Frogs of Africa Amphibians of Angola Amphibians of Botswana Amphibians of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Amphibians of Malawi Amphibians of Mozambique Amphibians of Namibia Amphibians of Zambia Amphibians of Zimbabwe Taxa named by Raymond Laurent Amphibians described in 1954 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot