Description of the tadpole of Mertensophryne lonnbergi (Anura : Bufonidae) from the highlands of Kenya

The tadpole of Mertensophryne lonnbergi is described from the Aberdare Mountains in Kenya. Although it resembles other African bufonid tadpoles in shape, size and color, it can be distinguished from them by the absence of a gap in the posterior oral papillae, a feature also shared by Mertensophryne anotis and M. micranotis. While the other known tadpoles in this genus (M. anotis, M. taitana, M. micranotis) all share a ’’ crowrn ’’, a ring of tissue surrounding the eyes and nostrils with a presumed respiratory function, M. lonnbergi has a faint trace of a crown, and skin folds forming transverse ripples behind the eyes, which may also serve to increase the respiratory surface.