Bufo
| Bufo | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Golden Toad (Bufo periglenes) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Bufonidae |
| Genus: | Bufo Laurenti, 1768 |
| Species | |
|
See text. | |
Bufo is a large genus of about 150 species of true toads in the amphibian family Bufonidae. Bufo is a Latin word for toad.
Description
True toads have in common stocky figures and short legs, which make them relatively poor jumpers. As with all members of the family Bufonidae, they lack a tail and teeth, and they have horizontal pupils. Their dry skin is thick and warty.
Behind their eyes, Bufo species have wart-like structures, the parotoid glands. These glands distinguish the true toads from all other tailless amphibians. They secrete a fatty, white poisonous substance which acts as a deterrent to predators. Ordinary, handling of toads is not dangerous, and does not cause warts in contradiction to folk beliefs. The poison of most if not all toads contains bufotoxin; the poison of the Colorado River toad (Bufo alvarius) is a potent hallucinogen containing 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenin. The poison's psychoactive effects are said to have been known to pre-Columbian Native Americans.[1]
Toads can also inflate their bodies when threatened. Males are usually smaller than females and possess a Bidder's organ, an incomplete ovary. The adult male of many species shows a dark throat. Breeding males have dark nuptial pads on their thumbs.[2]
Distribution
This is a truly cosmopolitan genus, able to live under adverse conditions, and occurring around the world except in the Arctic and Antarctic, Madagascar, Australia (with the exception of the introduced cane toad), and New Guinea and Oceania.
Bufo species in the British Isles
Two species are found in the British Isles: the common toad (Bufo bufo), and the natterjack toad, (Bufo calamita). The former is found almost everywhere in Great Britain, but not in Ireland. The natterjack, which differs in its shorter limbs with nearly free toes (which are so short, the toad never hops but proceeds in a running gait) and in usually possessing orange or red warts, green eyes, and a pale-yellow line along the middle of the back, is local in England, the south-west of Scotland, and the west of Ireland. It is further remarkable for the very loud croak of the males, produced by a large vocal bladder on the throat which, when inflated, is larger than the head.
Psychoactive properties
Several species of Bufo toads produce poison with psychoactive properties. The poison of one species (Bufo alvarius) contains both 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenin, while some others contain only bufotenin.[3] Author Lee B. Croft, in his satiric novel, Toadies: The Explanation of Toxicomania in American Society, has coined the word "bufoglossation" to describe the deliberate licking of Bufo toads for hallucinogenic purposes,[4] but psychoactive substance information site Erowid warns against such use because of the cardiotoxins (bufadienolides) included in the toads' poison.[5]
Groups
Species in this genus can be quite different, which has led to a recent recommendation in the Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History to split the genus, a recommendation that has been rejected (in part) by many taxonomists (see Pauly et al., 2004, Evolution 58: 2517–2535; Pauly et al., 2009, Herpetologica 65:115-128). Instead, the relationships between the different species are formalized by categorizing them into subgenera, such as Anaxyrus and Rhinella.
Species
Bufo is a large group, and it is usually divided into several subgenera. Frost et al. (2006) removed most of the species of former Bufo to other genera and restricted the name Bufo to members of the Bufo bufo group of earlier authors. However, other authors continue to recognize these subgroups of Bufo as subgenera.[6]
Rhinella is composed of a combination of Rhamphophryne and Chaunus (two subgroups of Bufo in the broad sense). Rhinella is recognized as a distinct genus by some, although other herpetologists disagree and maintain these species as a subgenus within Bufo. Here the species of Rhinella are treated in a separate page (where they may be considered a separate genus or as a subgenus of Bufo).
Subgenus Anaxyrus
Some authors recognize the Genus, Anaxyrus, as a subgenus of the Genus, Bufo. Anaxyrus contains 22 species found in North and Central America including the common American toad, A. americanus.
Subgenus Bufo
Composed of 12 species, this subgenus is found in temperate Eurasia and Japan south to North Africa, the Middle East, northeastern Myanmar, and northern Vietnam.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo aspinius (Yang, Liu, and Rao, 1996) | |
| Bufo bankorensis Barbour, 1908 | Central Formosa toad, Bankor toad |
| Bufo bufo (Linnaeus, 1758) | Common toad, European toad |
| Bufo gargarizans Cantor, 1842 | Chusan Island toad, Asiatic toad |
| Bufo japonicus Temminck and Schlegel, 1838 | Japanese toad |
| Bufo kabischi Herrmann and Kühnel, 1997 | |
| Bufo minshanicus Stejneger, 1926 | Gansu toad, Minshan toad |
| Bufo tibetanus Zarevskij, 1926 | Tibetan toad |
| Bufo torrenticola Matsui, 1976 | Honshū toad, Japanese stream toad |
| Bufo tuberculatus Zarevskij, 1926 | Qinghai Lake toad, Round-warted toad |
| Bufo verrucosissimus (Pallas, 1814) | Caucasian toad |
| Bufo wolongensis Herrmann & Kühnel, 1997 | |
Group "Bufo"
This assemblage of 23 species remained outside the main groups. Frost et al. denoted the species in this group as polyphyletic by placing "Bufo" in quotation marks. Presumably, as these taxa are studied, they will be allocated to one or another of the existing groups.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo ailaoanus Kou, 1984 | Ejia toad, Ailao toad |
| Bufo arabicus Heyden, 1827 | Arabian toad |
| Bufo beddomii Günther, 1876 | Beddome's toad |
| Bufo brevirostris Rao, 1937 | Kempholey toad, Short-nosed toad, Rao's pale brown toad |
| Bufo cryptotympanicus Liu & Hu, 1962 | Earless toad |
| Bufo dhufarensis Parker, 1931 | Oman toad - very similar to B. scorteccii |
| Bufo dodsoni Boulenger, 1895 | Dodson's toad |
| Bufo hololius Günther, 1876 | Malabar toad, Gûnther's toad |
| Bufo koynayensis Soman, 1963 | Humbali Village toad, Koyna toad, Chrome-yellow toad |
| Bufo mauritanicus Schlegel, 1841 | Berber toad, Pantherine toad, Moroccan toad |
| Bufo olivaceus Blanford, 1874 | Olive toad, Baluchistan coastal toad, Makran toad |
| Bufo pageoti Bourret, 1937 | Tonkin toad |
| Bufo parietalis (Boulenger, 1882) | Indian toad, Ridged toad, Timber forest toad |
| Bufo pentoni Anderson, 1893 | Shaata Gardens toad, Penton's toad |
| Bufo scaber Schneider, 1799 | Ferguson’s toad |
| Bufo scorteccii Balletto & Cherchi, 1970 | Scortecci’s toad |
| Bufo silentvalleyensis Pillai, 1981 | Silent Valley toad, South Indian hill toad |
| Bufo stejnegeri Schmidt, 1931 | Stejneger's toad, Korean toad, Water toad |
| Bufo stomaticus Lütken, 1864 | Assam toad, Indus Valley toad, Marbled toad |
| Bufo stuarti Smith, 1929 | Stuart’s toad |
| Bufo sumatranus Peters, 1871 | Sumatra toad |
| Bufo tihamicus Balletto & Cherchi, 1973 | Balletto's toad |
| Bufo valhallae Meade-Waldo, 1909 | Pulo Weh toad |
Subgenus Nannophryne
These four species were removed from the synonymy of Bufo by Frost et al., 2006. Smith and Chiszar, 2006, implied this taxon should be considered a subgenus of Bufo. They are found in South America.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo apolobambicus De la Riva, Ninon Ríos, and Aparicio, 2005 | |
| Bufo cophotis Boulenger, 1900 | Paramo toad |
| Bufo corynetes Duellman and Ochoa-M., 1991 | Abra Malaga toad |
| Bufo variegatus (Günther, 1870) | Eden Harbour toad |
Subgenus Incilius
Containing 33 species, Frost et al. moved these members to a separate genus in 2006, first to Cranopsis, then to Ollotis, and then to Incilius.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo alvarius Girard in Baird, 1859 | Colorado River toad |
| Bufo aucoinae O'Neill & Mendelson, 2004 | |
| Bufo bocourti Brocchi, 1877 | Bocourt's toad |
| Bufo campbelli Mendelson, 1994 | Campbell's forest toad |
| Bufo canaliferus Cope, 1877 | Dwarf toad |
| Bufo cavifrons Firschein, 1950 | Mountain toad |
| Bufo coccifer Cope, 1866 | Southern round-gland toad |
| Bufo coniferus Cope, 1862 | Evergreen toad |
| Bufo cristatus Wiegmann, 1833 | Large-crested toad |
| Bufo cycladen Lynch & Smith, 1966 | Northern round-gland toad |
| Bufo fastidiosus (Cope, 1875) | Pico Blanco toad |
| Bufo gemmifer Taylor, 1940 | Jeweled toad |
| Bufo holdridgei Taylor, 1952 | Holdridge's toad |
| Bufo ibarrai Stuart, 1954 | Jalapa toad |
| Bufo intermedius Günther, 1858 | Gunther's tropical toad |
| Bufo leucomyos McCranie & Wilson, 2000 | |
| Bufo luetkenii Boulenger, 1891 | Yellow toad |
| Bufo macrocristatus Firschein & Smith, 1957 | Large-crested toad |
| Bufo marmoreus Wiegmann, 1833 | Marbled toad |
| Bufo mazatlanensis Taylor, 1940 | Sinaloa toad |
| Bufo melanochlorus Cope, 1877 | Dark green toad |
| Bufo nebulifer Girard, 1854 | Gulf Coast toad |
| Bufo occidentalis Camerano, 1879 | Pine toad |
| Bufo periglenes Savage, 1967 | Monte Verde golden toad |
| Bufo peripatetes Savage, 1972 | Almirante Trail toad |
| Bufo perplexus Taylor, 1943 | confusing toad |
| Bufo pisinnus Mendelson, Williams, Sheil & Mulcahy, 2005 | |
| Bufo porteri Mendelson, Williams, Sheil & Mulcahy, 2005 | |
| Bufo signifer Mendelson, Williams, Sheil & Mulcahy, 2005 | |
| Bufo spiculatus Mendelson, 1997 | |
| Bufo tacanensis Smith, 1952 | Volcan Tacana coad |
| Bufo tutelarius Mendelson, 1997 | |
| Bufo valliceps Wiegmann, 1833 | |
Subgenus Peltophryne
These 11 species are distributed in the Greater Antilles.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo cataulaciceps Schwartz, 1959 | Schwartz's Caribbean toad |
| Bufo empusus (Cope, 1862) | Cope's Caribbean toad, Cuban toad |
| Bufo fluviaticus Schwartz, 1972 | Dominican Caribbean toad |
| Bufo fractus Schwartz, 1972 | |
| Bufo fustiger Schwartz, 1960 | |
| Bufo guentheri Cochran, 1941 | Gunther's Caribbean toad |
| Bufo gundlachi Ruibal, 1959 | Gundlach's Caribbean toad |
| Bufo lemur (Cope, 1869) | Lowland Caribbean toad |
| Bufo longinasus Stejneger, 1905 | Stejneger's Caribbean toad |
| Bufo peltocephalus Tschudi, 1838 | Tschudi's Caribbean toad |
| Bufo taladai Schwartz, 1960 | Cuban Caribbean toad |
Subgenus Phrynoidis
These two species were redelimited and removed from the synonymy of Bufo by Frost et al., 2006. Others implied this taxon should be considered a subgenus of Bufo.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo asper Gravenhorst, 1829 | Malayan giant toad |
| Bufo juxtasper Inger, 1964 | Giant river toad, Borneo river toad |
Subgenus Poyntonophrynus
Frost et al. moved these 10 species in 2006 to a separate genus.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo beiranus Loveridge, 1932 | Beira's toad |
| Bufo damaranus Mertens, 1954 | |
| Bufo dombensis Bocage, 1895 | Dombe toad |
| Bufo fenoulheti Hewitt & Methuen, 1912 | Transvaal dwarf toad |
| Bufo grandisonae Poynton & Haacke, 1993 | Mossamedes toad, Grandison's toad |
| Bufo hoeschi Ahl, 1934 | Okahandja toad, Hoesch's toad |
| Bufo kavangensis Poynton & Broadley, 1988 | Khwai River toad, Kavanga toad |
| Bufo lughensis Loveridge, 1932 | Lugh toad |
| Bufo parkeri Loveridge, 1932 | Parker's toad |
| Bufo vertebralis Smith, 1848 | African dwarf toad, pygmy toad |
Subgenus Epidalea
Frost et al. moved Bufo calamita Laurenti, 1768, Natterjack toad, in 2006 to a separate genus; it is found in Europe.
Subgenus Pseudepidalea
Frost et al. moved these 15 species in 2006 to a separate genus. It is the B. viridis group of previous authors.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo balearicus Boettger, 1880 | |
| Bufo baturae Stoeck, Schmid, Steinlein & Grosse, 1999 | Batura toad |
| Bufo boulengeri Lataste, 1879 | |
| Bufo brongersmai Hoogmoed, 1972 | Tiznit toad |
| Bufo latastii Boulenger, 1882 | Ladakh toad, Lataste's toad |
| Bufo luristanicus Schmidt, 1952 | |
| Bufo oblongus Nikolskii, 1896 | Danata toad, Middle Asiatic toad |
| Bufo pewzowi Bedriaga, 1898 | |
| Bufo pseudoraddei Mertens, 1971 | Swat green toad |
| Bufo raddei Strauch, 1876 | Tengger Desert toad, Radde's toad |
| Bufo siculus Stoeck, Sicilia, et al. 2008 | Sicilian green toad |
| Bufo surdus Boulenger, 1891 | Pakistan toad, Iranian toad |
| Bufo turanensis Hemmer, Schmidtler & Böhme, 1978 | |
| Bufo variabilis Pallas, 1769 | |
| Bufo viridis Laurenti, 1768 | European green toad |
| Bufo zamdaensis Fei, Ye, and Huang in Fei, Ye, Huang & Chen, 1999 | |
| Bufo zugmayeri Eiselt & Schmidtler, 1973 | |
Subgenus Rhaebo
These eight species were redelimited and removed from the synonymy of Bufo by Frost et al., 2006. Others implied this taxon should be considered a subgenus of Bufo.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo anderssoni Melin, 1941 | Andersson's toad |
| Bufo blombergi Myers & Funkhouser, 1951 | Colombian giant toad, Blomberg's toad |
| Bufo caeruleostictus Günther, 1859 | |
| Bufo glaberrimus Günther, 1869 | Cundinamarca toad |
| Bufo guttatus Schneider, 1799 | Spotted toad, smooth-sided toad |
| Bufo haematiticus Cope, 1862 | Truando toad |
| Bufo hypomelas Boulenger, 1913 | Choco toad |
| Bufo nasicus Werner, 1903 | Werner's toad |
Subgenus Vandijkophrynus
These five species are the former B. angusticeps group of Tandy and Keith, 1972, placed by Frost et al. in a separate genus.
| Binomial name and author | Common name |
|---|---|
| Bufo amatolicus Hewitt, 1925 | Amatola toad |
| Bufo angusticeps Smith, 1848 | Sand toad, Common Cape toad |
| Bufo gariepensis Smith, 1848 | Karroo toad, Gariep toad |
| Bufo inyangae Poynton, 1963 | Inyanga toad |
| Bufo robinsoni Branch & Braacke, 1996 | Paradise toad |
Footnotes
- ↑ Oroc, James. 2009. "Tryptamine Palace: 5-MeO-DMT and the Sonoran Desert Toad", Page 108 Park Street Press
- ↑ Conant, Roger. 1975. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin. Boston.
- ↑ http://www.erowid.org/animals/toads/
- ↑ Lee B Croft, Toadies: The Explanation of Toxicomania in American Society, Sintaksis, Moscow, Russia, 1992, ISBN 5-8342-0007-9
- ↑ http://www.erowid.org/animals/toads/toads_health.shtml
- ↑ Pauly et al., (2009). Herpetologica 65:115-128.
References
- "Amphibian Species of the World 5.1 - Bufonidae". Retrieved 2008-04-05.
- amphibiaweb.org - Bufo
- Blair (ed.), 1972, Evol. Genus Bufo.
- Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World
- Frost, D. R.; Grant, T.; Faivovich, J. N.; Bain, R. H.; Haas, A.; Haddad, C. L. F. B.; De Sá, R. O.; Channing, A.; Wilkinson, M.; Donnellan, S. C.; Raxworthy, C. J.; Campbell, J. A.; Blotto, B. L.; Moler, P.; Drewes, R. C.; Nussbaum, R. A.; Lynch, J. D.; Green, D. M.; Wheeler, W. C. (2006). "The Amphibian Tree of Life". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 297: 1–291. doi:10.1206/0003-0090(2006)297[0001:TATOL]2.0.CO;2. hdl:2246/5781.
- Pauly, G. B., D. M. Hillis, and D. C, Cannatella. (2004) The history of a Nearctic colonization: Molecular phylogenetics and biogeography of the Nearctic toads (Bufo). Evolution 58: 2517–2535.
- Pauly, Greg B., Hillis, David M. & Cannatella, David C. (2009): Taxonomic freedom and the role of official lists of species names. Herpetologica 65: 115-128. PDF full-text