Italian edible frog
The Italian hybrid frog ( Pelophylax " hispanicus " or Rana " hispanica " ) is within the order of Anura to the family of the Real frogs ( Ranidae ). In addition, he is expected to follow appearance, biology and distribution of the water frogs, which are now provided by many authors in a separate genus Pelophylax. Within this hard to looking taxonomic complex is not a biological species, but a hybrid of the hybridogenetische marsh frog ( Pelophylax ridibundus) and the Italian Pool Frog ( Pelophylax bergeri ). The shape comes in almost all of Italy, including Sicily before. The scientific epithet hispanicus ( " Spanish" ) is misleading. It is often placed in quotation marks to express the fact that this is not a real way. Alternatively, it is also the spelling Pelophylax kl. hispanicus possible, kl. for " Klepton " is (compare: pond frog).
Features
It is a medium-sized water frog, its body proportions are between its parent species Pelophylax bergeri and marsh. The inner hock is shorter and shallower than that of the Italian water frog. The top is greenish to brownish and has black spots on. It may be to recognize a bright Dorsallinie. On the inner thighs small white, sometimes pale yellowish to pale gray stains are present. The intensity of the color patches is often lower than that of P. bergeri.
The males possess paired dark gray vocal sacs ( at the Italian Pool Frog are these whitish ). During the breeding season, their Daumenschwiele is dark colored. The degree of pigmentation of the Bruns -friction varies but Wielen. Probably the forelimbs in the males are stronger pronounced than in the females.
A unique field biological classification of the taxon from Italian water frog is often not possible. Molecular biological determination is safest.
Distribution and habitat
The Italian hybrid frog comes in almost all of Italy ( mainland south of the Po Valley ) and in Sicily before - its area is congruent with its one parent species P. bergeri (apart from Corsica, where that was exposed ). South of an imaginary line from Genoa to Rimini he is next to the Italian Pool Frog the only Wasserfroschtaxon in Italy.
Pelophylax " hispanicus " colonize the same habitat as P. bergeri and come up with these mostly syntopically ago. Due to their high degree of heterozygosity them even more adaptability and ecological plasticity is said.
System
The Italian hybrid frog has both heredity of the Italian water frog ( these are similar to those of the little water frog Pelophylax lessonae ) and the Seefrosches. There appear to be present exclusively inherit the ridibundus genome when they propagate with the Italian Pool Frog consistently diploid animals. They are therefore bergeri also dependent on the backcross with Pelophylax. The inheritance pattern is so far easier here than in the edible frog ( Pelophylax " esculentus " ), where triploid individuals occur that allow reproduction without the presence of both parental species.
Since the marsh frog in Italy missing, the question arises how it could ever come to a hybridization. There are two theses. Either came Pelophylax bergeri before the last ice age to the north before, so that the crossing had taken place between him and the marsh outside the present-day Italy. The hybrids Pelophylax " hispanicus " would then immigrated to Italy. Another explanation is that the marsh frog genome of the Italian hybrid frog does not directly Seefröschen, but by another hybridogenetic hybrid water frogs, the frog pond ( P. " esculentus " ) could come. This would therefore act as Vice- transmitter of ridibundus genome without that bergeri P. and P. ridibundus would ever met directly.