Hyperolius benguellensis (Barboza du Bocage, 1893)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Anura > Family: Hyperoliidae > Subfamily: Hyperoliinae > Genus: Hyperolius > Species: Hyperolius benguellensis

Rappia benguellensis Barboza du Bocage, 1893, J. Sci. Math. Phys. Nat., Lisboa, Ser. 2, 3 (10): 119. Syntypes: MBL 17.220–223, according to Perret, 1976, Arq. Mus. Bocage, Ser. 2, 6: 26; destroyed in 1978 fire, according to Laurent, 1985, in Frost (ed.), Amph. Species World: 207. Type locality: "Cahata" = Caota, Benguella, Angola.

Rappia dombeensis Tornier, 1896, in Möbius (ed.), Deutsch Ost-Afr., 3: 150. Holotype: ZMB 6465, according to Tillack, de Ruiter, and Rödel, 2021, Zoosyst. Evol., Berlin, 97: 440. Type locality:”Dombe” = Dombe Grande, Benguela Province, Angola. Provisional placement in this synonymy; see comment. 

Rappia oxyrhynchus Boulenger, 1901, Ann. Mus. R. Congo Belge, Tervuren, Zool., 2: 5. Syntypes: MRAC and BMNH (1947.2.9.49 [formerly 1901.3.12.26] and 1947.2.9.50–51 [formerly 1901.3.26.7–8] according to museum records). Laurent, 1943, Ann. Mus. R. Congo Belge, Tervuren, Zool., 4: 73, regarded MRAC 151, apparently in error, as the holotype. Type locality: "Pweto et de Lofoï", Dem. Rep. Congo. Synonymy with Hyperolius nasutus by Laurent, 1957, Explor. Parc Natl. Upemba, Miss. G.F. de Witte, 42: 3–47. See Channing, Moyer, and Burger, 2002, Afr. Zool., 37: 97. Placed in this synonymy by Channing, Hillers, Lötters, Rödel, Schick, Conradie, Rödder, Mercurio, Wagner, Dehling, Du Preez, Kielgast, and Burger, 2013, Zootaxa, 3620: 317.

Hyperolius oxyrhynchusNoble, 1924, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., 49: 252, 327; Laurent, 1943, Ann. Mus. R. Congo Belge, Tervuren, Zool., 4: 73. 

Hyperolius benguellensisNoble, 1924, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., 49: 251, 324; Ahl, 1931, Das Tierreich, 55: 305.

English Names

Benguella Long Reed Frog (Channing, Hillers, Lötters, Rödel, Schick, Conradie, Rödder, Mercurio, Wagner, Dehling, Du Preez, Kielgast, and Burger, 2013, Zootaxa, 3620: 317). 

Bocage's Sharp-nosed Reed Frog (Lambiris, 1990 "1989", Monogr. Mus. Reg. Sci. Nat. Torino, 10: 172; Du Preez and Carruthers, 2009, Compl. Guide Frogs S. Afr.: 244).

Benguella Reed Frog (Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 66).

Benguela Reed Frog (Marques, Ceríaco, Blackburn, and Bauer, 2018, Proc. California Acad. Sci., Ser. 4, 65 (Suppl. II): 94). 

Distribution

Western to southeastern Angola, northern Namibia, and northern Botswana; possibly to be found more widely but confused with Hyperolius nasutus.

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Angola, Botswana, Namibia

Comment

In the Hyperolius nasutus group and removed from the synonymy of Hyperolius nasutus by Amiet, 2005, Rev. Suisse Zool., 112: 271–310 (although on page 292, he allowed that it may be a synonym of Hyperolius nasutus), where it had been placed by Loveridge, 1953, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 110: 362–363; and Schiøtz, 1999, Treefrogs Afr.: 97. See comment under Hyperolius viridisChanning, Hillers, Lötters, Rödel, Schick, Conradie, Rödder, Mercurio, Wagner, Dehling, Du Preez, Kielgast, and Burger, 2013, Zootaxa, 3620: 317–319, provided an account, including a description of the advertisement call, and redelimited the species. Marques, Ceríaco, Blackburn, and Bauer, 2018, Proc. California Acad. Sci., Ser. 4, 65 (Suppl. II): 94–96, provided a map for Angola and a brief account. Not addressed by Portik, Bell, Blackburn, Bauer, Barratt, Branch, Burger, Channing, Colston, Conradie, Dehling, Drewes, Ernst, Greenbaum, Gvoždík, Harvey, Hillers, Hirschfeld, Jongsma, Kielgast, Kouete, Lawson, Leaché, Loader, Lötters, van der Meijden, Menegon, Müller, Nagy, Ofori-Boateng, Ohler, Papenfuss, Rößler, Sinsch, Rödel, Veith, Vindum, Zassi-Boulou, and McGuire, 2019, Syst. Biol., 68: 859–875. Baptista, António, and Branch, 2019, Amph. Rept. Conserv., 13 (e203): 96–130, reported on specimens from Bicuar National Park, southwestern Angola, and comment on the state of systematics. Tillack, de Ruiter, and Rödel, 2021, Zoosyst. Evol., Berlin, 97: 440, discussed the collector and collection as well as relevant correspondence surrounding the naming of Rappia dombeensis. They placed it in the Hyperolius nasutus complex, but without genetic confirmation did not think further assignment was possible; it is here included in this synonymy solely on the basis of proximity to the type locality of Hyperolius benguellensis, although this is just an attempt to bring more attention to the taxon rather than abandon it to incertae sedis (DRF). Conradie, Keates, Verburgt, Baptista, and Harvey, 2023, Amph. Rept. Conserv., 17: 31, provided an account and dot map of the species in Angola.  

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