Amphibians (Frogs)
269
FAMILY: PIPIDAE
Xenopus muelleri Peters 1844
Order: Anura
Family: Pipidae
Common name: Muller’s clawed frog,
African clawed frog.
Distribution: Angola, Benin, Botswana,
Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon,
Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique,
Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan,
Swaziland, United Republic of Tanzania,
Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe (AmphibiaWeb, 2014g).
Habitat: Temporary and permanent
ponds; streams and rivers.
Description: It is a medium-sized
clawed frog with button-like protruding eyes situated dorsally. Body is
flattened. Adults measure 38–60 mm
(snout-vent length). Subocular tentacles
are well developed, reaching about
0.6–1 of the eye diameter. Skin is almost
smooth. Starting at the posterior border
of the eye, there is a double line of elongate unpigmented flat sensory tubercles
(lateral line sense organs). On breeding
males, the outer part of the fingers is
black. Dermal lobes above the vent are
better developed in females. Web of the
hind limbs is fully developed. Toes 3–5
have black horny claws. Dorsal parts
of body and limbs are drab olive with
large black patches that are sometimes
vaguely defined. Iris shows a silver-gray
glimmer. Venter is whitish to orange
yellow. Some darker patches occasionally appear on the throat and on the
thighs. Female’s belly may be scattered
with black spots (AmphibiaWeb, 2014g).
Nutritional Facts
Proximate Composition (% WW)
Moisture
Protein Ash Fats
75.60
19.53
1.17 1.81
Amino Acids (g/100 g Protein or g/16 g N)
Lysine
5.08
Histidine
2.27
Arginine
8.02
Aspartic acid
9.80
Threonine
3.11
Serine
2.71
Glutamic acid
14.39
Proline
3.25
Continued