An early Pliocene (5.1 Ma) fossil frog community from Langebaanweg, south-western Cape, South Africa

Matthews, Thalassa; Dijk, E. van; Roberts, D.L.; Smith, Roger M. H.

doi:10.1080/21564574.2014.985261

Cited by 16 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Specifically, we used the following as normally distributed constraints of node ages: MRCA of the crown group including Arthroleptis , 92.8 (84.5–111.8) million years ago [Ma]; Hemisus + Brevicipitidae, 65.9 (54.1–84.9) Ma; Breviceps , 45.4 (32.9–63.4) Ma; and Callulina , 29.6 (19.5–44.5) Ma (see Loader et al., for more detail). Direct fossil calibration was not possible due to the lack of pre‐Quaternary fossil material attributable to Brevicipitidae (Matthews, van Dijk, Roberts, & Smith, ). The beast analysis ran for 100 million generations, sampling every 10,000 th gen., with a 20% burn‐in, and using a Yule prior.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multilocus phylogenetics in a widespread African anuran lineage (Brevicipitidae: Breviceps) reveals patterns of diversity reflecting geoclimatic change

Nielsen

Daniels

Conradie

et al. 2018

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim To investigate models assessing the influence of geomorphology and climatic shifts on species diversification in sub‐Saharan Africa by reconstructing the pattern and timing of phylogenetic relationships of rain frogs (Brevicipitidae: Breviceps). Location Sub‐Saharan Africa, south of the Congo Basin. Methods Multilocus sequence data were generated for near complete species‐level sampling of the genus Breviceps. Phylogenetic relationships were inferred via Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood analyses on both concatenated and single‐gene datasets. Network analyses identified locus‐specific reticulate relationships among taxa. Bayesian methods were used to infer dates of divergence among Breviceps lineages, and niche modelling was used to identify possible adaptive divergence. Results Breviceps is monophyletic and comprised of two major, largely allopatric subclades. Diversity within each subclade is concentrated in two areas with contrasting geologic and climatic histories: the arid/semiarid winter rainfall zone in the south‐western (SW) Cape, and the semitropical East Coast that receives predominantly summer rainfall. Recognized species diversity in the SW Cape based on phenotypic variation is consistent with observed genetic patterns whereas the East Coast is shown to harbour unexpectedly high genetic diversity and up to seven putative, cryptic species. Niche models show significant overlap between closely related species. Main conclusions Dating analyses indicate that diversification of Breviceps occurred rapidly within the Miocene, with only a moderate decline over the Plio‐Pleistocene, suggesting that this process might be slowed but ongoing. Our findings suggest that a combination of two models, a landscape barrier model and climate fluctuation model, can explain patterns of diversification in Breviceps. This demonstrates that Miocene epeirogenic events and climatic shifts may have had a considerable influence on contemporary patterns of biodiversity. Topographic complexity and relative geoclimatic stability in the East have promoted cryptic diversification in allopatry, and this area clearly harbours numerous undescribed taxa and is in need of detailed biotic investigation.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multilocus phylogenetics in a widespread African anuran lineage (Brevicipitidae: Breviceps) reveals patterns of diversity reflecting geoclimatic change

Nielsen

Daniels

Conradie

et al. 2018

Journal of Biogeography

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“…The second aspect is the scarce fossil record of the group in Africa. In the most recent review of the literature (Gardner and Rage, 2016), only seven sites have yielded fragmentary remains attributed to the Pyxicephalidae, none older than 5.1 Ma (Matthews et al, 2015), leaving a 45 Ma gap with the molecular age and 35 to 28 Ma with Thaumastosaurus. This gap in the fossil record shows that a large portion of the evolutionary history of the clade is undocumented in the fossil record, and it would not be surprising if new specimens from the Cenozoic of the continent were attributed to the clade, extending its geographic range and filling the stratigraphic gap with Thaumastosaurus.…”

Section: Paleobiogeographic Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From Toad to Frog, a CT-based Reconsideration of Bufo servatus , an Eocene Anuran mummy from Quercy (France)

Lemierre¹,

Folie²,

Bailón³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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In the XIXth century, natural mummies of amphibians were discovered in the Quercy Phosphorites. The specific collection site has never been formally reported, which hampered precisely dating these specimens. The name Bufo servatus was erected for one these mummies, based on the external morphology of the specimen.The tomography of similarly preserved specimens, originating from this same unknown site, revealed almost complete preserved skeletons, preserved soft-tissues and gut contents. We analyze here the holotype of Bufo servatus using CT-scanning in order to investigate its potentially preserved internal features. As for the previous specimen, a subcomplete articulated skeleton was identified. Surprisingly, this skeleton is almost identical to that of Thaumastosaurus gezei, an Eocene anuran from Western Europe, to which other specimens from this mummy series were previously assigned. Few differences between the specimen skeletons highlight ontogenetic and intraspecific variations, making T. gezei a junior synonym of B. servatus, creating the new combination Thaumastosaurus servatus. Given its association with previously described Quercy specimens, this redescribed anuran is probably from the same time interval as T. gezei. Previous phylogenetic analyses have assigned T. servatus to Ranoides, with natatanuran affinities. Using data from this newly described specimen, we test here further its taxonomic affinities. Our analyses confirm this position, and formally identify T. servatus as a Natatanuran member of Pyxicephalidae (currently endemic of Equatorial Africa) and more precisely, a stem-Pyxicephalinae. This result confirms the origin of Thaumastosaurus, a member of the African herpetofauna occupying Western Europe before the Grande Coupure at the Eocene/Oligocene transition.

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“…11 Congruently, the fauna at LBW indicates more humid conditions than at present, but the precise nature of the vegetation in the area remains uncertain and until recent research on the frog fauna there were no effective proxies indicating the amount of rainfall, or seasonality, at the fossil site. 10,[12][13][14] A recent study of the rich and diverse anuran (frog) community from LBW served as an effective and direct climatic proxy, and showed that this group, sensitive as they are to rainfall and moisture, supported the higher humidity inferred from studies of other faunal groups from the site, and indicated relatively high rainfall. 12,15 The huge contrast between the frog community in the Langebaanweg region today, as compared with 5.1 mya, is clearly indicated by the fact that species richness on the relatively dry west coast of South Africa is low today (1-10 species) 16,17 , whereas at LBW, six families and some 19 taxa have been differentiated 12 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…10,[12][13][14] A recent study of the rich and diverse anuran (frog) community from LBW served as an effective and direct climatic proxy, and showed that this group, sensitive as they are to rainfall and moisture, supported the higher humidity inferred from studies of other faunal groups from the site, and indicated relatively high rainfall. 12,15 The huge contrast between the frog community in the Langebaanweg region today, as compared with 5.1 mya, is clearly indicated by the fact that species richness on the relatively dry west coast of South Africa is low today (1-10 species) 16,17 , whereas at LBW, six families and some 19 taxa have been differentiated 12 . The LBW frog fauna is put in context when compared to modern species richness elsewhere in the southwestern Cape, which varies from 11 to 30 species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implications of summer breeding frogs from Langebaanweg, South Africa: Regional climate evolution at 5.1 mya

Matthews¹,

Measey²,

Roberts³

2016

S. Afr. J. Sci.

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No direct palaeoclimatic proxies have been available to indicate the seasonality or amount of rainfall on the west coast of southern Africa during the Early Pliocene. The Benguela Upwelling System (BUS) is today one of the factors responsible for the present-day aridity on the west coast of southern Africa. The initiation of the BUS is frequently linked to the entrenchment of aridity and the establishment of the current winter rainfall pattern on the west coast; however, marine proxies are inconclusive regarding the effects of past fluctuations in the BUS and sea surface temperatures on the rainfall regime. Neither the fossil evidence nor the fact that plants using the C3 photosynthetic pathway predominate at this time, provide direct evidence of winter rainfall at Langebaanweg. We challenge certain assumptions which are commonly made in the literature regarding the timing of inception of a winter rainfall regime on the west coast and the onset of aridity in the Langebaan region, and provide new evidence as to seasonality of rainfall at Langebaanweg in the Early Pliocene. Herein, the identification of frog species from the genus Ptychadena from Langebaanweg provides new and compelling evidence for a summer rainfall regime, or of at least significant summer rainfall, at 5.1 mya in the southwestern Cape of South Africa.

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An early Pliocene (5.1 Ma) fossil frog community from Langebaanweg, south-western Cape, South Africa

Cited by 16 publications

References 26 publications

Multilocus phylogenetics in a widespread African anuran lineage (Brevicipitidae: Breviceps) reveals patterns of diversity reflecting geoclimatic change

Multilocus phylogenetics in a widespread African anuran lineage (Brevicipitidae: Breviceps) reveals patterns of diversity reflecting geoclimatic change

From Toad to Frog, a CT-based Reconsideration of Bufo servatus , an Eocene Anuran mummy from Quercy (France)

Implications of summer breeding frogs from Langebaanweg, South Africa: Regional climate evolution at 5.1 mya

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