Summary ⁶

The marbled reed frog or painted reed frog (Hyperolius marmoratus) is a species of frogs in the Hyperoliidae family found in Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe, and Botswana, Lesotho, and Tanzania. It occurs in a wide range of natural habitats, including forests, savannas, shrublands, grasslands, rivers, swamps, freshwater lakes, and intermittent freshwater lakes. It coexists well with humans, and is also found in pastureland, rural gardens, and urban areas. Its range appears to be...

Description ⁷

A medium-sized Hyperolius with a maximum body length of about 33 mm. Pupil horizontal. The adult color pattern is extremely variable and has led to many systematic and nomenclatural uncertainties about this ‘superspecies’. Ongoing investigations into the ecology, call structure and genetics of populations from different parts of Africa will help to resolve the taxonomy of this group (Minter et al. 2004). The pattern varies from distinct stripes through to vermiculations, dots and splotches, and the colours of the patterns vary from dark brown or black through to yellow and peppermint green. Juvenile males appear to be overall brown during their first breeding season (see photograph of juveniles in combat).

For another description of H. marmoratus, see the H. viridiflavussuperspecies account (by A. Schiøtz).

This species shows developmental changes in patterning, with two phases defined in Schiøtz (1999), J (juveniles and many mature males) and F (mature females and some mature males). All newly metamorphosed individuals are phase J, which is normally brownish to green with paired light dorsolateral lines, or an hourglass pattern. All females, and some males, develop into phase F before the first breeding season. Phase F is often colorful and variable, showing the diagnostic color characteristics for the species or subspecies. Either well-defined morphs may be present, or graded variation.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Brian Gratwicke, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.flickr.com/photos/19731486@N07/2080259237
2. Luke Verburgt, no known copyright restrictions (public domain), https://calphotos.berkeley.edu/imgs/512x768/0000_0000/0311/3467.jpeg
3. (c) Mick (Mike) Jackson, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mick (Mike) Jackson
4. (c) James Steamer, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by James Steamer
5. (c) Greg Lasley, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Greg Lasley
6. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperolius_marmoratus
7. (c) AmphibiaWeb © 2000-2015 The Regents of the University of California, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://eol.org/data_objects/34269113

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• AMNH Amphibian Species of the World
• AmphibiaWeb
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HerpMapper
• VertNet

Range Map

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