SYSTEMATIC REVISION OF THE GENUS AGLYPTODACTYLUS, BOULENGER, 1919 (AMPHIBIA, RANIDAE), AND ANALYSIS OF ITS PHYLOGENETIC-RELATIONSHIPS TO OTHER MADAGASCAN RANID GENERA (TOMOPTERNA, BOOPHIS, MANTIDACTYLUS, AND MANTELLA)

Recent field studies revealed two new species of the genus Aglyptodact ylus (Amphibia: Anura: Ranidae), which was hitherto considered as mono typic and confined to humid eastern Madagascar. Both new species, Agly ptodactylus laticeps sp. n. and Aglyptodactylus securifer sp. n.; occu r syntopically in the deciduous dry forest of Kirindy in western Madag ascar. In comparison to Aglyptodactylus madagascariensis from eastern rainforests, the new species A. laticeps shows a remarkable morphorogi cal divergence, which may be partly due to adaptations to burrowing ha bits in dry environments. Despite of the morphological differentiation , advertisement calls and osteology indicate that all three species of Aglyptodactylus are closely related. A phylogenetic analysis of the M adagascan ranid genera Aglyptodactylus, Mantella, Mantidactylus, Booph is, and Tomopterna (the latter including species from Madagascar, Afri ca, and Asia) strongly supports a sister group relationship of Aglypto dactylus with the ranine genus Tomopterna. We therefore transfer Aglyp todactylus from the Rhacophorinae to the Raninae and discuss implicati ons of this rearrangement for ranoid systematics. The existence of the endemic genus Aglyptodactylus in Madagascar as well as its close phyl ogenetic relationships to Tomopterna confirm that the Raninae were alr eady present on the Madagascan plate before its separation from Africa . The Madagascan Tomopterna labrosa shows several important difference s both to Asian and to African species of the genus, and is therefore transferred from the subgenus Sphaerotheca (now restricted to Asia) to a new subgenus Laliostoma subgen. n.