''Cardioglossa cyaneospila'' 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 Arthroleptidae. 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 else ...

to the

Albertine Rift The Albertine Rift is the western branch of the East African Rift, covering parts of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. It extends from the northern end of Lake Albert to the southern end of Lake Tan ...

area in eastern

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 ...

, southwestern

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The sou ...

, Rwanda, and southwestern Burundi. It was described in 1950 by

Raymond Laurent Raymond Ferdinand Louis-Philippe Laurent (16 May 1917 – 3 February 2005) was a Belgian herpetologist, who specialized in African and South American amphibians and reptiles. He published more than 200 scientific articles and book chapters. Several ...

based on specimens collected in 1949. No new records were published until 2011. Recent research has uncovered both old unpublished records and several new records, and the conservation status was changed from "data deficient" to "near threatened" in 2016. Common names Bururi long-fingered frog and Mukuzira long-fingered frog have been coined for this species.

Description

Two males from Bururi measure about in snout–vent length. The species is named for its unusual blueish gray color. It has dark spots in its dorsum, a dark mask surrounding the eye and tympanum, and an infratympanal line typical for the genus ''Cardioglossa''. Males have extremely long third fingers.

Habitat and conservation

''Cardioglossa cyaneospila'' occurs in

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial ...

s at elevations of above sea level, with one imprecise record from about . Specimens have been found active along trails during the day as well as active on the ground just before dusk, calling among low-lying vegetation some 1 metre above a stream. Montane forests in the range of this species are generally highly threatened by agricultural encroachment and logging. However, it occurs in several protected areas, including

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park The Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP) is in southwestern Uganda. The park is part of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and is situated along the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) border next to the Virunga National Park and on the edge o ...

in Uganda,

Kahuzi-Biéga National Park The Kahuzi-Biega National Park is a protected area near Bukavu town in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is situated near the western bank of Lake Kivu and the Rwandan border. Established in 1970 by the Belgian photographer and conserv ...

in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bururi Nature Reserve in Burundi, and Gishwati Forest in Rwanda. It is also likely to occur in the

Virunga National Park , iucn_category = II , iucn_ref = , location = Democratic Republic of the Congo , map = Democratic Republic of the Congo , relief = 1 , coordinates = , area = , established = , nearest_city = Goma , photo =Virunga National Park-107997 ...

, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2700607 cyaneospila Frogs of Africa Amphibians of Burundi Amphibians of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Amphibians of Rwanda Amphibians of Uganda Amphibians described in 1950 Taxa named by Raymond Laurent Taxonomy articles created by Polbot