The anuran fauna of a West African urban area

Reported are the results of an amphibian survey in the district of Daloa and surroundings, in central-western Ivory Coast. Spanning a three year period, we investigated two general areas, each during the rainy and dry seasons. During 62 days of field work 30 anuran species were recorded. The urban environment mainly contained widespread anuran species with preferences for savannah-dominated landscapes and farmbush habitats. The recorded total anuran species richness in the urban area exceeded the diversity in the savannah islands/forest mosaic bordering the Daloa district. This indicates many savannah species may do well in urban situations. However, this higher species richness was only due to one site that possessed particularly diverse amphibian breeding sites, thus illustrating the necessity of maintaining suitable habitats for a wide-range of species. One of the most surprising findings was Kassina schioetzi, a species usually difficult to find in its natural habitat. In Daloa it seems to have successfully adapted to the urban conditions. Although the anuran richness in the Daloa area was relatively low compared to other Ivorian humid savannah areas, it supported an important part of the countries amphibian diversity. Nevertheless the forest habitats, and specifically the forest islands bordering the Daloa district, should be considered sensitive conservation areas.