Hyperolius pardalis Laurent, 1948

Lobón-Rovira, Javier, Lobón-Rovira, Baptista, Ninda L, Clark, Tyron, Verburgt, Luke, Jongsma, Gregory Fm, Conradie, Werner, and, Luis Veríssimo, Vaz, Pedro & Pinto, 2025, Filling the gaps: herpetological checklist of Mayombe National Park and Cabinda Province (Angola) shed light on one of the most unexplored corners of tropical Central Africa, African Journal of Herpetology 74 (1), pp. 1-59 : 1-59

Hyperolius pardalis Laurent, 1948

Figures 6O–Q

Material. ANGOLA – Cabinda Province • between Dinge and Chindende; –5.1208, 12.3667; 15 m a.s.l.; FKH 0161–62 , FKH 0164 , P9.063, FKH 0168 ; GenBank: PQ455784–88. • Mayombe NP, Chimbete; –4.6631, 12.5447; 182 m a.s.l.; FKH 1241 ; GenBank: PQ455789. • Mayombe NP, Sanga Mongo; –4.6661, 12.4407; 146 m a.s.l.; FKH 0962−63 ; GenBank: PQ455790–91. • Mayombe NP, Bata Lunhuca; –4.5981, 12.4597; 215 m a.s.l.; P4.093; GenBank: PQ455792 .

Identification. Hyperolius pardalis is a medium-sized reed frog (SVL = 26−33 mm) within the H. steindachneri complex (sensu Baptista 2024), and is highly polymorphic. We recorded two different morphotypes in both males and females. Based on the strikingly different female patterns we can tentatively recognise two subpopulations, a western subpopulation found only in gallery forest in the Littoral Peneplain, and an eastern subpopulation found in several rainforest sites across Lower Mayombe. Males are characterised by a dark canthal line, white transversal line defining the base of the gular sac, reddish toe and finger discs and usually orange-brown dorsum, sometimes with a yellowish tinge, covered with darker spots ( Figure 6O ). In the eastern subpopulation females had the same black ventrum with white spots, but the dorsal parts displayed a goldenblack marbled pattern ( Figure 6P ). In the western subpopulation, one collected male was yellowish-green with white dorsolateral stripes, while all females were black with bright yellowish to orange spots on the dorsum, and white spots on the ventrum ( Fig. 6Q ). All material collected in Cabinda Province showed little genetic divergence (<0.8% 16S p -distance) despite striking colour differences. In addition, specimens reported here were assigned to H. pardalis because they only differ by 1.2% (16S p -distance) from material collected from Pool, Republic of the Congo (GenBank: KY080201 ) and by 1.5% (16S p -distance) from material collected from Mambele, Cameroon (GenBank: MK509657 ), ∼ 340 km east of the type locality (Bitye, Cameroon).

Biology and distribution. Widely distributed in West-Central Africa, from southern Cameroon and the Central African Republic to northern Angola ( Channing and Rödel 2019). All specimens collected in this work were found in thick vegetation near deep water pools in mature forest habitat. The geographical segregation between the two morphotypes, albeit apparently not supported genetically, suggests some phenotypic plasticity and/or ecological segregation that needs further investigation. The species was not recorded in Upper Mayombe.

Figures

Figure 6. Species of the family Hyperoliidae recorded from Mayombe National Park and Cabinda Province, Angola. Codes in brackets represent field numbers. A. Afrixalus aff. dorsalis (P2.068) from Sanga Mongo, B. Mbundu (P3.127), Lower Mayombe and C. Tando Zinze (P1.150). D. Afrixalus osorioi (P3.175) from Miconge, Upper Mayombe. E. Afrixalus paradorsalis (P3.520) from Sanga Wanda, Lower Mayombe and F. Vaku (P2.060), Upper Mayombe. G. Hyperolius adspersus (P1.147) from Tando Zinze. H. Female Hyperolius ocellatus (P9.062) from South of Dinge and I. male H. ocellatus from Sanga Mongo, Lower Mayombe (P2.078) J. Hyperolius olivaceus (P3.173), K. (P2.222) and L. (P2.227) from Miconge, Upper Mayombe, and M. (P3.205) from Lower Mayombe. N. Hyperolius parallelus (P1.298) from Tando Zinze. O. Male Hyperolius pardalis (P3.143) from Chimbete, Lower Mayombe, and P. females of H. pardalis from Sanga Mongo, Lower Mayombe (P2.083) and Q. from South of Dinge (P9.058). R. Hyperolius platyceps (P2.067) and S. (P2.102) from Sanga Mongo, Lower Mayombe. T. Hylambates leonardi (P2.095) in amplexus, from Sanga Mongo, Lower Mayombe. Photographs by PVP (A–I, K–M, O–T), JLR (J) and TB (G, N).