Congratulations to Sandra, Jacobo and Stephane!

A new species of puddle frog from an unexplored mountain in southwestern Ethiopia

Sandra Goutte, Jacobo Reyes-Velasco, Stephane Boissinot

Abstract

A new species of Phrynobatrachus is described from the unexplored and isolated Bibita Mountain, southwestern Ethiopia, based on morphological characters and sequences of the mitochondrial rRNA16s. The new species can be distinguished from all its congeners by a small size (SVL = 16.8 ± 0.1 mm for males, 20.3 ± 0.9 mm for females), a slender body with long legs and elongated fingers and toes, a golden coloration, a completely hidden tympanum, and a marked canthus rostralis. The phylogenetic hypothesis based on 16s sequences places the new species as sister to the species group that includes P. natalensis, although it is morphologically more similar to other dwarf Phrynobatrachus species, such as the Ethiopian P.minutus.

Phrynobatrachus bibita sp. n. A Live pictures of P. bibita sp. n. Male holotype (left; SB440) and female paratopotype (right; SB424) B Ventral and dorsal views of the same individuals, with male on the left and female on the right. Scale bar: 10 mm