Amietia fuscigula
Silhouette: Dmitry Bogdanov (vectorized by T. Michael Keesey) · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The Cape river frog (Amietia fuscigula) is a species of frog in the family Pyxicephalidae named for the Cape of Good Hope. Formerly, it was placed in the family Ranidae. It occurs widely in the Eastern Cape and Western Cape provinces of South Africa. A newly described species, A. poyntoni, was split from this species in 2013.
The Cape river frog is a fairly large, typical frog with a snout-to-vent measurement of up to about 125 mm. The snout is slightly rounded. It has a powerful, athletic build with long hind legs and feet, well adapted for leaping, but also well webbed; the species is a powerful swimmer. The fore feet are not webbed. When the animal sits at rest on a level surface, the tip of the longest rear toe reaches to directly below the tympanum.
The ventral skin is smooth and white, except for dark mottling on the throat. The mottling inspired the specific epithet fuscigula: Latin for "dusky throated". In some specimens, the mottling extends to the belly. The dorsal skin bears a modest sprinkling of small, rounded protuberances and segments of longitudinal ridges. The colour scheme is variable, ranging from dark- through light-brown, also commonly green... Wikipedia →
Recording0:38
South Africa · 2022
© flamelily · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:38
South Africa · 2021
© Cameron Scott · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:21
South Africa · 2021
© Alex Rebelo · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | De Hoop Nature Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exotic Animal World | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Cape River Frog sighting in De Hoop Nature Reserve on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 4th most-seen of the 6 amphibians we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Cape River Frog in De Hoop Nature Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in January, March–July and September–October, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cape River Frog sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Cape River Frog sightings, De Hoop Nature Reserve ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Table Mountain National Park (South Africa, about 40%) and Garden Route National Park (South Africa, about 30%).
Same family: Pyxicephalidae
The closest relatives of the Cape River Frog that you can see in De Hoop Nature Reserve (family Pyxicephalidae, African Box-headed Frogs) are Clicking Stream Frog (about 40%) and Cape sand frog (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Cape River Frog is recorded against all the amphibians logged in De Hoop Nature Reserve (7 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
