Scutiger occidentalis

Scutiger occidentalis is a species of toad found in the Western Himalayas of Pakistan (Gilgit Baltistan) and northwestern India (Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh). It has often been treated as a synonym of Scutiger nyingchiensis (by, e.g., IUCN in 2004[1]), but molecular data show that these species are distinct. It is also known as the Ladakh high altitude toad, Ladakh pelobatid toad, western pelobatid toad, or Asian lazy toad.[2][3] It is the most western member of its genus.[3][4]

Scutiger occidentalis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Megophryidae
Genus: Scutiger
Species:
S. occidentalis
Binomial name
Scutiger occidentalis
Dubois, 1978

Description

A large-sized Scutiger, adult males of S. occidentalis measure 57–70 mm (2.2–2.8 in) and adult females 63–72 mm (2.5–2.8 in) in snout–vent length. The snout is relatively short.[5]

A Gosner stage 25 tadpole measured 8.9 mm (0.4 in) in snout–vent length and 22.5 mm (0.9 in) in total length.[4]

Habitat and conservation

S. occidentalis inhabits high-mountain regions at elevations between 2,680 and 4,300 m (8,790 and 14,110 ft) above sea level. A tadpole was found from a 0.5-metre deep pool under a waterfall.[4]

As of October 2021, S. occidentalis has only been included in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as a synonym of S. nyingchiensis,[6] corresponding to the western part of its range.[4] S. nyingchiensis was assessed as a "least-concern species" in 2004.[1]

References
  1. Fei Liang; Michael Wai Neng Lau; Sushil Dutta; Annemarie Ohler & Tej Kumar Shrestha (2004). "Scutiger nyingchiensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2004: e.T57619A11664484. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T57619A11664484.en.
  2. Frost, Darrel R. (2021). "Scutiger occidentalis Dubois, 1978". Amphibian Species of the World: An Online Reference. Version 6.1. American Museum of Natural History. doi:10.5531/db.vz.0001. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  3. Hofmann, Sylvia; Stöck, Matthias; Zheng, Yuchi; Ficetola, Francesco G.; Li, Jia-Tang; Scheidt, Ulrich & Schmidt, Joachim (2017). "Molecular phylogenies indicate a Paleo-Tibetan origin of Himalayan Lazy Toads (Scutiger)". Scientific Reports. 7 (1): 3308. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-03395-4.
  4. Litvinchuk, S. N.; Melnikov, D. A.; Borkin, L. J. & Hofmann, S. (2019). "Rediscovery of the high altitude lazy toad, Scutiger occidentalis Dubois, 1978, in India". Russian Journal of Herpetology. 26 (1): 17–22. doi:10.30906/1026-2296-2019-26-1-17-22.
  5. Khatiwada, Janak Raj; Shu, Guocheng; Subedi, Tulsi Ram; Wang, Bin; Ohler, Annemarie; Cannatella, David C.; Xie, Feng & Jiang, Jianping (2019). "A new species of megophryid frog of the genus Scutiger from Kangchenjunga Conservation Area, eastern Nepal". Asian Herpetological Research. 10 (3): 138–157. doi:10.16373/j.cnki.ahr.180076.
  6. "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species". Retrieved 23 October 2021.
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