What do we know about the amphibians from the Kenyan central and western highlands? A faunistic and taxonomic review

We reviewed the pertinent faunistic and taxonomic knowledge available from literature and scientific collections on the amphibians from the central and western highlands of Kenya. Fifty-four anuran species in 19 genera and 12 families were recognized. Higher taxa are those also found in adjacent African regions. Exceptions are some genera otherwise known from extreme East Africa which, along with the order Gymnophiona, are absent from the central and western highlands of Kenya. The species Ptychadena schillukorum, P. taenioscelis and Afrixalus osorioi are reported for the first time from Kenyan territory.
The taxonomy of several species is poorly resolved, underlining the need for more alpha-taxonomic effort. This should include the application of modern methods, as molecular markers to uncover cryptic species diversity. We calculated 9.04 ± 6.11 (1-30) localities per species (n = 54) and 3.98 ± 2.88 (1-25) species per locality (n = 127), showing that sampling for both species and localities is of different quality and apparently far from complete. Sampling bias due to accessibility may play a role, and more comprehensive field surveys are suggested. It may be considered that certain amphibians reach their geographic range limits just at the periphery of the Kenyan central and western highlands (e.g. 'Congolian' forest taxa) or are restricted to a small distribution within that region.