New population of African green toad discovered
With amphibians under threat all over the world, we were delighted to discover a new population of the African green toad (Bufo boulengeri) in the foothills of a mountain range within Dghoumes National Park, Tunisia.
The species prefers open landscapes and is very
resistant to drought and salinity. However, within this
context, B. boulengeri utilises a range of permanent and
ephemeral habitats, such as streams, swamps, brackish
and freshwater marshes, pools and ponds, and artificial
water bodies including, wells, cisterns, agricultural
reservoirs, road ditches and concrete reservoirs.
Read the paper on the reproductive phenology
of the North African green toad Bufo boulengeri in
Dghoumes National Park. Despite being within
its known range, this is a new location record for the
species.
Recent discoveries in the foothills of Dghoumes National Park
On 24th and 25th October 2009, tadpoles and
recently-metamorphosed juveniles of B. boulengeri
were observed. A year later, on 22nd and 23rd October
2010, along the muddy shores of one of the two
semi-natural ponds, and in the surrounding area, thousands
of recently-metamorphosed juveniles were observed in
activity or hiding under stones and in the muddy soil.
In addition, tadpoles at different stages of development and metamorphosed individuals, as well as some adults were observed in the water and among the surrounding vegetation.
Reference: Ernesto Filippi, Abdelkader Chetoui, Gian Lorenzo D’Alterio, Guy Parker and Tim Woodfine.
Bufo boulengeri: field observations on breeding phenology at a new Saharan site in Southern Tunisia. pp. 215-217. (published online 27 May 2011)