- Bufo
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True Toads 
Monte Verde Toad (Bufo periglenes) Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Amphibia Order: Anura Family: Bufonidae Genus: Bufo
Laurenti, 1768Species 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.
Contents
Description
True toads have in common a stocky figure 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.
Western Toad (Bufo boreas)
Behind their eyes, Bufo species have wartlike 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 Sonoran Desert 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 Precolumbian Native Americans.[citation needed]
Toads can also inflate their bodies when threatened. Males are usually smaller than females and possess the organ of Bidder, an incomplete ovary. The adult males of many species show a dark throat. Breeding males have dark nuptial pads on their thumbs.[1] When stressed, toads can let a poison seep through their skin that when swallowed could kill a large dog.
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. The Natterjack, which differs in its shorter limbs with nearly free toes (which are so short that 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
There are several species of Bufo toads which produce poison that has psychoactive properties. The poison of one species (Bufo alvarius) contains both 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenin, while some others contain only bufotenin.[2] 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,[3] but psychoactive substance information site Erowid warns against such use because of the cardiotoxins included in the toads' venom[4].
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
Colorado River Toad (Bufo alvarius)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.[5]
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
Main article: AnaxyrusContains 22 species found in North and Central America including the common American Toad, Bufo americanus. See separate article.
Subgenus Bufo
Composed of 12 species. 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, Common 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"
An assemblage of 25 species which 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 atukoralei Bogert & Senanayake, 1966 Yala Toad, Atukorale's Dwarf 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 Bufo scorteccii Bufo dodsoni Boulenger, 1895 Dodson's Toad Bufo hololius Günther, 1876 Malabar Toad, Gûnther's Toad Bufo kotagamai Fernando & Dayawansa, 1994 Kotagama's Dwarf 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
Four species. Removed from the synonymy of Bufo by Frost et al., 2006. Smith and Chiszar, 2006 implied that this taxon should be considered a subgenus of Bufo. Found in South America.
Binomial Name and Author Common Name Bufo apolobambica 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
Contains 33 species. Frost et al. moved these members to a separate genus in 2006, first to Cranopsis and then to Ollotis and then to Incilius. Most[who?] herpetologists are retaining the use of Bufo at this time (e.g., following Pauly et al., 2004; and Pauly et al., 2009) as the valid name for this group of toads.
Binomial Name and Author Common Name Bufo alvarius Girard in Baird, 1859 Sonoran Desert 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 Roundgland Toad Bufo coniferus Cope, 1862 Evergreen Toad Bufo cristatus Wiegmann, 1833 Large-crested Toad Bufo cycladen Lynch & Smith, 1966 Northern Roundgland 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 Toad Bufo tutelarius Mendelson, 1997 Bufo valliceps Wiegmann, 1833 Subgenus Peltophryne
Contains 11 species. 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
Two species. Redelimited and removed from the synonymy of Bufo by Frost et al., 2006. Others implied that 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 Subgenus Poyntonophrynus
Ten species. Frost et al. moved it 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
One species. Frost et al. moved it in 2006 to a separate genus. Found in Europe.
Binomial Name and Author Common Name Bufo calamita Laurenti, 1768 Natterjack Subgenus Pseudepidalea
15 species. Frost et al. moved it in 2006 to a separate genus. It is the Bufo 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
Eight species. Redelimited and removed from the synonymy of Bufo by Frost et al., 2006. Others implied that 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
Five species. It is the former Bufo angusticeps group of Tandy and Keith, 1972. This group was 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
- ^ 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)
References
- "Amphibian Species of the World 5.1 - Bufonidae". http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/names.php?taxon=&family=Bufonidae&subfamily=&genus=&commname=&authority=&year=&geo=0&dist=&comment=. 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, Darrel; Grant, Taran; Faivovich, JuliÁN; Bain, Raoul H.; Haas, Alexander; Haddad, CÉLIO F.B.; De SÁ, Rafael O.; Channing, Alan et al. (2006). "The Amphibian Tree of Life". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 297: 1–371. doi:10.1206/0003-0090(2006)297[0001:TATOL]2.0.CO;2.
- 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 fulltext
Categories:- Toads
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