Afrixalus fornasini
Silhouette: Jose Carlos Arenas-Monroy · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
Afrixalus fornasini is a species of frog in the family Hyperoliidae and is native to Africa. Its common name is Fornasini's spiny reed frog or the greater leaf-folding frog The specific epithet fornasini is in honour of Italian amateur naturalist Carlo Antonio Fornasini, who collected the type specimen.
It is found in Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, South Africa and possibly Eswatini. Its natural habitats are temperate forest, subtropical or tropical dry forest, dry savanna, moist savanna, temperate shrubland, subtropical or tropical moist shrubland, temperate grassland, subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland, swamps, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, water storage areas, and ponds.
The species is threatened in some parts of its range by habitat loss, but in general it is not very rare, and in some places common. Both male and female Afrixalus fornasinii adults prey on grey foam-nest tree frog eggs and tadpoles. This species is the first African anuran to demonstrate hetero-cannibalism by preying on eggs belonging to the same family. Wikipedia →
Recording0:03
Tanzania · 2014
© probreviceps · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:24
South Africa · 2025
© Bruce Surmon · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:03
Malawi · 2024
© Tim Brammer · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Fornasini's Spiny Reed Frog sighting in iSimangaliso Wetland Park on a given day, based on 47 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 8th most-seen of the 22 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.
January and February
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Fornasini's Spiny Reed Frog in iSimangaliso Wetland Park on a given day, against under 5% in July, the lowest month. Those are among iSimangaliso Wetland Park's wettest months, with about 110 mm of rain a month against 30 mm in July.
Between 7 and 10 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Fornasini's Spiny Reed Frog sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Yes
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Fornasini's Spiny Reed Frog sightings, iSimangaliso Wetland Park has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come uMkhuze Game Reserve (South Africa, about 20%) and Kruger National Park (South Africa, under 5%).
Same family: Hyperoliidae
The closest relatives of the Fornasini's Spiny Reed Frog that you can see in iSimangaliso Wetland Park (family Hyperoliidae, African Reed Frogs) are Painted Reed Frog (about 50%), Tinker Reed Frog (about 40%) and Water Lily Reed Frog (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Fornasini's Spiny Reed Frog is recorded against all the amphibians logged in iSimangaliso Wetland Park (47 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.
