Phylogeny of east Asian bufonids inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequences(Anura : Amphibia)

We investigated the relationships of Asian bufonids using partial sequences of mitochondrial DNA genes. Twenty-six samples representing 14 species of Bufo from China and Vietnam and 2 species of Torrentophryne from China were examined. Three samples of Bufo viridis from Armenia and Georgia were also sequenced to make a comparison to its sibling tetraploid species B. danate nsis. Bufo americanus, from Canada, was used as the outgroup. Sequences fro m the 12S ribosomal RNA, 16S ribosomal RNA, cytochrome b, and the control r egion were analyzed using parsimony. East Asian bufonids were grouped into two major clades. One clade included B. andrewsi, B. bankorensis, B. gargar izans, B. tibetanus, B. tuberculatus, its sister clade B. cryptotympanicus, and the 2 species of Torrentophryne. The second clade consisted of B. gale atus, B. himalayanus, B. melanostictus, and a new species from Vietnam. The placement of three taxa (B. raddei B. viridis, and its sister species, B. danatensis) was problematic. The genus Torrentophryne should be synonymized with Bufo to remove paraphyly. Because B. raddei does not belong to the cl ade that includes B. viridis and B. danatensis, it was removed from the vir idis species group. The species status of B bankorensis from Taiwan is eval uated. (C) 2000 Academic Press.