The European spadefoot toads are a family What does and does not belong to each family is determined by a taxonomist. Similarly for the question if a particular family should be recognized at all. Often there is no exact agreement, with different taxonomists each taking a different position. There are no hard rules that a taxonomist needs to follow in describing or recognizing a family of frogs, the Pelobatidae, with only one extant genus Pelobates, containing four species. They are native to Europe Europe is one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus region (Specification of borders) and the Black Sea to the southeast. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean and, the Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant. The sea is technically a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it is usually identified as a completely, northwestern Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people (as of 2009, see table) in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.72% of the world's human population and western Asia Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population. During the 20th century Asia's population nearly quadrupled.

The European spadefoot toads are small to large sized frogs, up to 10 centimetres (3.9 in) in length, which are often inconspicuously coloured. They are predominantly fossorial (burrowing) frogs, which burrow in sandy soils. They have a hardened protrusion on their feet to aid in digging, which is the source of the common name. They will emerge from the ground during periods of rain and breed in pools, which are usually temporary.[2]

All of the species from this family have free-living, aquatic tadpoles A tadpole, polliwog , or pollywiggle (also polliwiggle, polwiggle, or porwiggle) is the wholly aquatic larval stage in the life cycle of an amphibian, particularly of a frog or toad. The eggs are laid in temporary ponds that may quickly evaporate, so tadpole stage is unusually brief, with rapid development to the adult form in as little as two weeks. To further speed their growth, some of the tadpoles are cannibalistic Cannibalism , is the act or practice of humans eating the flesh of other human beings. It is also called anthropophagy. A person who practices cannibalism is called a cannibal, eating their brood-mates to increase their supply of protein.[2]

Taxonomy

The seven species of American Spadefoot Toads (genera Scaphiopus Scaphiopus is a genus of North American amphibian commonly referred to as the southern spadefoot toads. They differ greatly from true toads by having eyes with vertical pupils, no parotoid gland, and relatively smooth skin. Their most distinctive feature is a spade-like projection on their hind feet, which their common name is derived from. This and Spea Spea is a genus of North American amphibian commonly referred to as the western spadefoot toad. They differ greatly from true toads by having eyes with vertical pupils, no parotoid gland, and relatively smooth skin. Their most distinctive feature is a spade-like projection on their hind feet, which their common name is derived from. This) were previously also included into the Pelobatidae family, but are now generally regarded as the separate family Scaphiopodidae Scaphiopodidae is a toad family of American spadefoot toads. They are native to southern Canada and USA south to southern Mexico. Scaphiopodidae is a small family, comprising of only seven species.

Family Pelobatidae

Fossils

The earliest fossil genus of pelobatids, Elkobatrachus, was described in 2006.[4]

In the Jurassic Morrison Formation, pelobatids are represented by the illium of an unnamed but indeterminate species.[1] This illium is larger than that of Enneabatrachus, a contemporary discoglossid Discoglossidae is a family of primitive frogs, with the common name Disc-Tongued Frogs. They are native to Europe and North-West Africa species.[1] A specimen has been recovered from Quarry 9 of Como Bluff in Wyoming.[1] Pelobatids are present in stratigraphic zones 5 and 6 of the formation.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Foster, J. (2007). "Pelobatidae indet." Jurassic West: The Dinosaurs of the Morrison Formation and Their World. Indiana University Press. p. 137.
  2. ^ a b Zweifel, Richard G. (1998). Cogger, H.G. & Zweifel, R.G.. ed. Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians. San Diego: Academic Press. p. 88. ISBN The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering (SBN) code created by Gordon Foster, now Emeritus Professor of Statistics at Trinity College, Dublin, for the booksellers and stationers W.H. Smith and others in 1966 0-12-178560-2.
  3. ^ Tron, François (2005): The Eastern spadefoot Toad (Pelobates syriacus): A new amphibian species for Lebanon
  4. ^ Bioone.org
  5. ^ Foster, J. (2007). "Appendix." Jurassic West: The Dinosaurs of the Morrison Formation and Their World. Indiana University Press. pp. 327-329.
Extant anuran Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia (Latin salere (salio), "to jump"). Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits (fingers or toes), protruding eyes and the absence of a tail. Frogs are widely known as exceptional jumpers, and many of the anatomical characteristics of frogs, families by suborder
Kingdom Animalia Animals are a major group of mostly multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and independently. All animals are also · Phylum Chordata Chordates are animals which are either vertebrates or one of several closely related invertebrates. They are united by having, for at least some period of their life cycle, a notochord, a hollow dorsal nerve cord, pharyngeal slits, an endostyle, and a post-anal tail. The phylum Chordata consists of three subphyla: Urochordata, represented by · Subphylum Craniata Craniata is a proposed clade of chordate animals that contains the Myxini (hagfish), Petromyzontida (including lampreys), and Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates) as living representatives. As the name suggests, Craniata are animals with a (hard bone or cartilage) skull in Chordata · Superclass Tetrapoda Tetrapods are vertebrate animals having four feet, legs or leglike appendages. Amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals are all tetrapods, and even the limbless snakes are tetrapods by descent. The earliest tetrapods radiated from the Sarcopterygii, or lobe-finned fish · Class Amphibia Amphibians , such as frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians, are ectothermic (or cold-blooded) animals that metamorphose from a juvenile water-breathing form, either to an adult air-breathing form, or to a paedomorph that retains some juvenile characteristics. Proteidae (mudpuppies and waterdogs) are good examples of paedomorphic species
Archaeobatrachia Archaeobatrachia is a suborder of Anura containing various primitive frogs and toads. As the name literally suggests, these are the most primitive frogs. Many of the species show certain physiological characteristics which are not present in other frogs and toads, thus giving rise to this group. They are largely found in Eurasia, New Zealand, the Ascaphidae The tailed frogs are two species of frogs. The species are part of the genus, Ascaphus is the only taxon in the family Ascaphidae . The "tail" in the name is actually an extension of the male cloaca. The tail is one of two distinctive anatomical features adapting the species to life in fast-flowing streams. It is the only North American · Bombinatoridae Bombinatoridae are often referred to as Fire-bellied toads because of their brightly colored ventral sides, which show that they are highly toxic to humans. This family includes two genera, Barbourula and Bombina, both of which have flattened bodies · Discoglossidae Discoglossidae is a family of primitive frogs, with the common name Disc-Tongued Frogs. They are native to Europe and North-West Africa · Leiopelmatidae Leiopelmatidae, or New Zealand primitive frogs, is a family belonging to the suborder Archaeobatrachia. Their relatively primitive form indicates that they have an ancient lineage. Only four species are known to belong to the family. As the common name suggests, they are only found in New Zealand
Mesobatrachia Mesobatrachia is the second largest of the Anura suborders of amphibians. It contains 6 families, 20 genera and 168 species. This is, of course, not matched to the 5,047 species noted in the Neobatrachia suborder. The name suggests they are moderately old Megophryidae Megophryidae are a large family of frogs native to the warm southeast of Asia, from the Himalaya foothills eastwards, south to Indonesia and the Greater Sunda Islands in Maritime Southeast Asia, and extending to the Philippines. As of mid-2008 it encompasses approximately 70-100 species of frog divided between 12 genera. For lack of a vernacular · Pelobatidae The European spadefoot toads are a family of frogs, the Pelobatidae, with only one genus Pelobates, containing four species. They are native to Europe, the Mediterranean, northwestern Africa and western Asia · Pelodytidae Parsley frogs, Pelodytidae, is a family of order Anura. The family consists of just one genus, Pelodytes, which contains only three species. These frogs can be found in southwestern Europe and the Caucasus. The common name of "parsley frogs" comes from the Common Parsley Frog which, because of its colouring, looks garnished with parsley · Pipidae The Pipidae are a family of primitive, tongueless frogs. The thirty species in the family Pipidae are found in tropical South America and sub-Saharan Africa (four other genera) · Scaphiopodidae Scaphiopodidae is a toad family of American spadefoot toads. They are native to southern Canada and USA south to southern Mexico. Scaphiopodidae is a small family, comprising of only seven species · Rhinophrynidae The Mexican Burrowing Toad is the only species in the genus Rhinophrynus and the family Rhinophrynidae of order Anura. These frogs live from the southern Texas through Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador to Nicaragua and Costa Rica. The family was once more widespread, including species ranging as far north as Canada, but these died out in
Neobatrachia Neobatrachia are a suborder of the Anura, the order of frogs and toads. This suborder is the most advanced and apomorphic of the three anuran orders alive today; hence its name, which literally means "new frogs". It is also by far the largest of the three; its more than 5,000 different species make up over 96% of all living anurans Amphignathodontidae The marsupial frogs are a family in the order Anura. The family consists of two genera, Gastrotheca, and Flectonotus. These frogs are native to Neotropical America (= Central America & South America) · Aromobatidae · Arthroleptidae Arthroleptidae is a family of frogs found in Sub-Saharan Africa. They are also known as squeakers because of their high-pitched call. They are small, less than 4 centimetres (1.6 in) in length, terrestrial frogs found mostly in leaf litter on the forest floor. They completely bypass any aquatic stage, and therefore do not have tadpoles. They lay · Brachycephalidae · Bufonidae Bufonidae is the family of the true toads, members of the order Anura . They are the only family of anurans all members of which are known as "toads." The bufonids now comprise more than 35 genera, Bufo being the most widespread and well known · Centrolenidae · Craugastoridae Craugastoridae is a family of frogs which consists of 2 genera with a disjunct distribution: Craugastor and Haddadus · Dendrobatidae Poison dart frog is the common name of a group of frogs in the family Dendrobatidae which are native to Central and South America. Unlike most frogs, these species are active during the day and often exhibit brightly-colored bodies. Although all wild dendrobatids are at least somewhat toxic, levels of toxicity vary considerably from one species to · Heleophrynidae The Heleophrynidae, is a family of order Anura, commonly known as ghost frogs. The family consists of a single genus, Heleophryne, and six species. Ghost frogs live in swift-moving mountain streams in South Africa. The common name of "ghost frogs" may have been coined because of their occurrence in Skeleton Gorge · Hemiphractidae · Hemisotidae The shovelnose frogs are nine species of frog in the genus, Hemisus, the only genus in the Family Hemisotidae. They are found in tropical and subtropical sub-Saharan Africa. The shovelnose frogs are moderate sized frogs, reaching a length of 8 centimetres . They are round-bodied, with short legs. Their head is small and narrow, with a hard, · Hylidae Hylidae is a wide-ranging family of frogs commonly referred to as "tree frogs and their allies". However, the hylids include a diversity of frog species, many of which do not live in trees, but are terrestrial or semi-aquatic · Hyperoliidae Hyperoliidae is a family of small to medium sized, brightly colored, frogs which contains more than 250 species in 19 genera. Seventeen genera are native to sub-Saharan Africa . In addition,the monotypic genus Tachycnemis occurs on the Seychelles Islands, and the genus Heterixalus is endemic to Madagascar · Leptodactylidae Leptodactylidae is a diverse family of frogs that probably diverged from other hyloids during the Cenozoic era, or possibly at the end of the Mesozoic. There are roughly 50 genera, one of which is Eleutherodactylus, the largest vertebrate genus, with over 700 species. In total, there are approximately 1100 leptodactylid species, most of which are · Mantellidae Mantellidae is a family of the order Anura. These frogs are found only in Madagascar and Mayotte · Microhylidae Microhylidae is a geographically widespread family of frogs. There are 413 species in 69 genera and nine subfamilies, which is the largest number of genera of any frog family · Myobatrachidae · Petropedetidae · Ranidae · Rhacophoridae · Rhinodermatidae · Sooglossidae

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