Mantella Gallery
Undescribed mantella, Mantella cf crocea
The mantellas are a complicated group; although the first two species were described in 1872 (as poison frogs, Dendrobates), and ten more species through the 1930's, Jean Guibe's revision in 1964 only recognized four. These were the painted, as M.cowani, bronze, as M.betsileo, golden, M.aurantiaca, and splendid M.pulchra. All others were considered synonyms, except M.madagascariensis, for which the specimens and description were considered too poor to separate M.cowani and M.pulchra. In the late 1970's and early 80's, exploration of Madagascar began again, and several new mantellas became known, but went unnamed due to lack of specimens for study. A single, mainly black, subspecies of M.cowani was named by Guibe in 1978 for specimens collected at Betafo and Ambatondradama (central highlands) and first reported by him in 1964. The new form was named M.cowani nigricans, but no type specimen was designated and the type locality was given as possibly the isolated northern Marojezy highlands.
The next revision was made by Klaus Busse in 1981. Busse considered M.pulchra and M.cowani to belong to the same species and therefore considered the description of M.madagascariensis to be adequate for both. He continued to recognize the black subspecies, now as M.madagascariensis nigricans, reported the Betafo and Ambatondradama localities for it, and also named a new subspecies from Tolagnaro, M.madagascariensis haraldmeieri, first reported by Harald Meier. Busse did, however, resurrect M.laevigata, a very distinctive species. He also reported on the extreme regional color and pattern variation in M.madagascariensis.
MORE TO COME...
Golden mantella, Mantella aurantiaca
Ruby mantella, Mantella aurantiaca "rubida"
Black-eared mantella, Mantella milotympanum
Undescribed mantella, Mantella cf crocea "green forest"
Unknown mantella, Mantella cf crocea "black-mask"
Variegated mantella, Mantella loppei
Variegated mantella, Mantella loppei
Variegated mantella, Mantella loppei
Splendid mantella, Mantella pulchra
Underside of splendid mantella
Unknown mantella, Mantella cf pulchra
Painted mantella, Mantella baroni
Painted mantella, Mantella baroni
Underside of painted mantella
Hybrid mantella, Mantella x baroni
Halloween mantella, Mantella cowanii
Undescribed mantella, Mantella cf haraldmeieri
Unknown mantella, Mantella cf haraldmeieri?
Bronze mantella, Mantella ebenaui
Blue-leg mantella, Mantella expectata
Green mantella, Mantella viridis
Unknown mantella, Mantella cf viridis
Unknown mantella, Mantella cf viridis
Green climbing mantella, Mantella laevigata
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