''Boehmantis'' is a genus of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order (biology), order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough ski ...

s in the mantellid subfamily

Mantellinae Mantellinae is a subfamily of frogs in the family Mantellidae. These frogs are native to Madagascar and Mayotte. The species vary in size from under 25 mm (e.g. some species of ''Blommersia'') to over 100 mm (e.g. '' Mantidactylus guttu ...

. It is monotypic, being represented by a single species, ''Boehmantis microtympanum''. The genus is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

Taxonomy

''Boehmantis microtympanum'' was originally described in the genus ''

Mantidactylus ''Mantidactylus'' is a frog genus in the mantellid subfamily Mantellinae. This genus is restricted to Madagascar. The genus is divided into several subgenera that form monophyletic genetic clusters and are ecologically similar. Taxonomy ''Mant ...

'' by

Fernand Angel Fernand Angel (2 February 1881, Douzy – 13 July 1950, Paris) was a French herpetologist. In 1905 he began work as Assistant Preparator under Léon Vaillant and François Mocquard at the ''Muséum national d'histoire naturelle'' in Paris. Later ...

. The species was transferred to its own genus, ''Boehmantis'', by

Frank Glaw Frank Rainer Glaw (born 22 March 1966 in Düsseldorf) is a German Herpetology, herpetologist working at the Zoologische Staatssammlung München. Glaw studied biology in Cologne from 1987, where he completed his diploma. Thereafter, he attended ...

and

Miguel Vences Professor Miguel Vences (born 24 April 1969 in Cologne) is a German herpetologist and evolutionary biologist. Much of his research is focused on the reptiles and amphibians of Madagascar. Life The son of Galician philosopher Sergio Vences F ...

. This was justified using molecular data as well as by the lack of femoral glands, which are present in all other species in the subfamily Mantellinae.

Etymology

The generic name honours , German herpetologist.

Description

''Boehmantis microtympanum'' are relatively large frogs, with adults measuring in

snout–vent length Snout–vent length (SVL) is a morphometric measurement taken in herpetology from the tip of the snout to the most posterior opening of the cloacal slit (vent)."direct line distance from tip of snout to posterior margin of vent" It is the mos ...

. The tympanum is rather indistinct and small. The finger and toe tips bear well-developed discs; the fingers have no webbing whereas the toes are fully webbed. Dorsal skin is smooth. The dorsal colouration varies from olive greenish to—especially in subadults—brown, with lighter or darker indistinct markings. The ventral parts are white, often with dark spots or marblings on the throat and chest. This species is not known to be able to

call Call or Calls may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * Call (poker), a bet matching an opponent's * Call, in the game of contract bridge, a bid, pass, double, or redouble in the bidding stage Music and dance * Call (band), from L ...

Distribution and habitat

This species is

to southeastern

and is known from Midongy du sud National Park south to

Andohahela National Park The Andohahela National Park is situated in Anosy in the south-east of Madagascar. It is remarkable for the extremes of habitats that are represented within it. The park covers of the Anosy mountain range, the southernmost spur of the Malagasy H ...

. It occurs in pristine and degraded forests, usually in mature ones, with one record from an open area next to a relict forest. It lives in fast-flowing, rocky streams at elevations of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

Conservation status

''Boehmantis microtympanum'' is currently considered Vulnerable by the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

due to its limited range and ongoing

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

. Nevertheless, it is locally common and occurs in two national parks (Midongy du sud and Andohahela) as well as in

Tsitongambarika Tsitongambarika is a 58,597 ha protected area of lowland forest in the Anosy region of southeast of Madagascar, to the north of Fort-Dauphin. The area supports rare species of amphibians, birds, lemurs and reptiles, many of which are endemic. In ...

Classified Forest.

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q10740461, from2=Q28008129 Mantellidae Monotypic amphibian genera Endemic frogs of Madagascar Taxa named by Frank Glaw Taxa named by Miguel Vences Taxonomy articles created by Polbot