The bronze caco (''Cacosternum nanum''), or bronze dainty frog, is a species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" '' Triadobatrachus'' is ...

in the family

Pyxicephalidae The Pyxicephalidae are a family of frogs currently found in sub-Saharan Africa. However, in the Eocene, the taxon '' Thaumastosaurus'' lived in Europe. Classification The Pyxicephalidae contain two subfamilies, with a total of 12 genera. This ...

found in South Africa,

Eswatini Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its ...

, and possibly

Lesotho Lesotho ( ), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country landlocked as an enclave in South Africa. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the highest mountains in Southern Africa. It has an area of over and has a populatio ...

and Mozambique. ''Cacosternum nanum'' is one of the most common frogs in its range. It occurs in a wide range of habitats, including fynbos heathland,

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...

, shrubland, grassland, farmland, plantations, rural grassland, degraded forest, and urban areas. They

aestivate Aestivation ( la, aestas (summer); also spelled estivation in American English) is a state of animal dormancy, similar to hibernation, although taking place in the summer rather than the winter. Aestivation is characterized by inactivity and ...

below the surface or under logs and stones during dry periods, and may emerge in large numbers after heavy rain.

References

Cacosternum Frogs of Africa Vertebrates of Lesotho Amphibians of Mozambique Amphibians of South Africa Taxa named by George Albert Boulenger Amphibians described in 1887 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Ranoidea-stub