Phylogeny of African long-fingered frogs (Arthroleptidae: Cardioglossa) reveals recent allopatric divergences in coloration

The African anuran genus Cardioglossa contains 19 described species, most of which are distinguished from one another by striking patterns and colors. We present a well- resolved phylogeny based on analyses of mitochondrial and nuclear loci for 18 species of Cardioglossa. This provides the basis for species-delimitation analyses and interpreting historical biogeography in the genus. Whereas much of the diversification within the genus occurred among Central African lineages during the Miocene following the origin of Cardioglossa in the latest Oligocene or earliest Miocene, most species-pairs in the genus diverged more recently during the Plio-Pleistocene. The two most geographically peripheral species— C. cyaneospila in the Albertine Rift Mountains and C. occidentalis in the Upper Guinean Forests of West Africa—both diverged from other lineages during the mid-late Miocene. Because our analyses do not support C. manengouba and C. oreas as distinct species, we recognize these geographical...