Stats

Lifespan

5-10 yrs

Size

Medium

Diet

Insectivore

Activity

Nocturnal

Social

Solitary

Biome

Tropical savanna

Range

Sub-Saharan Africa

Movement

Hopping

Breeding

Egg-laying

Defense

Toxins

Status

Rare

About

A stocky, flattened African toad with a distinctive pale dorsal stripe running the length of its back. Despite its warty appearance, it is harmless and plays a key role in controlling insect populations across sub-Saharan Africa.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   egg

   A jelly-coated egg is laid in water and develops over days into an aquatic larva.
2. 2.
   tadpole

   A gilled tadpole swims and grazes on algae, slowly absorbing its tail and growing limbs.
3. 3.
   juvenile

   A near-adult amphibian leaves the water with new legs and lungs, smaller than the mature form.
4. 4.
   adult

   Fully grown at adult size, breathing air.

Learn more

• View on iNaturalist →

Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Amphibia

Order

Anura

Family

Bufonidae

Genus

Sclerophrys

Species

Sclerophrys maculata