Anaxyrus, containing the North American toads, is a genus of true toads in the family Bufonidae. The genus is endemic to North and Central America, and contains many familiar North American toad species such as the American toad, Woodhouse's toad, and the western toad.
Most species in this genus were initially classified in Bufo, but were split due to their genetic divergence and geographic separation. Some authorities still consider Anaxyrus to be a subgenus within Bufo. However, other authorities have disputed this classification, as doing so would also require all morphologically distinct Old World toad species to also be placed in Bufo.
Species Binomial name Described by, year Common name Anaxyrus americanus ↔ Bufo americanus Holbrook, 1836 American toad Anaxyrus baxteri ↔ Bufo baxteri Porter, 1968 Wyoming toad Anaxyrus boreas ↔ Bufo boreas Baird & Girard, 1852 western toad Anaxyrus californicus ↔ Bufo californicus Camp, 1915 arroyo toad Anaxyrus canorus ↔ Bufo canorus Camp, 1916 Yosemite toad Anaxyrus cognatus ↔ Bufo cognatus Say, 1823 Great Plains toad Anaxyrus compactilis ↔ Bufo compactilis Wiegmann, 1833 plateau toad, Texas toad Anaxyrus debilis ↔ Bufo debilis Girard, 1854 North American green toad Anaxyrus exsul ↔ Bufo exsul G. Myers, 1942 black toad Anaxyrus fowleri ↔ Bufo fowleri Hinckley, 1882 Fowler's toad Anaxyrus hemiophrys ↔ Bufo hemiophrys Cope, 1886 Canadian toad Anaxyrus houstonensis ↔ Bufo houstonensis Sanders, 1953 Houston toad Anaxyrus kelloggi ↔ Bufo kelloggi Taylor, 1938 little Mexican toad Anaxyrus mexicanus ↔ Bufo mexicanus Brocchi, 1879 southwestern toad Anaxyrus microscaphus ↔ Bufo microscaphus Cope, 1867 Arizona toadAnaxyrus monfontanus ↔ Bufo monfontanusGordon, Simandle, Sandmeier & Tracy, 2020Hot Creek toad Anaxyrus nelsoni ↔ Bufo nelsoni Stejneger, 1893 Amargosa toadAnaxyrus nevadensis ↔ Bufo nevadensisGordon, Simandle, Sandmeier & Tracy, 2020Railroad Valley toad Anaxyrus punctatus ↔ Bufo punctatus Baird & Girard, 1852 red-spotted toad, Baird's spotted toad Anaxyrus quercicus ↔ Bufo quercicus Holbrook, 1840 oak toad Anaxyrus retiformis ↔ Bufo retiformis Sanders and H.M. Smith, 1951 Sonoran green toad Anaxyrus speciosus ↔ Bufo speciosus Girard, 1854 Texas toad Anaxyrus terrestris ↔ Bufo terrestris Bonnaterre, 1789 southern toadAnaxyrus williamsi ↔ Bufo williamsiGordon, Simandle, and Tracy, 2017Dixie Valley toad Anaxyrus woodhousii ↔ Bufo woodhousii Girard, 1854 Woodhouse's toad The following fossil taxa are also known, all of which were also previously placed in Bufo:
†Anaxyrus defensor (Meylan, 2005) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene of Florida) †Anaxyrus hibbardi (Taylor, 1937) (Late Miocene of Kansas) †Anaxyrus pliocompactilis (Wilson, 1968) (Late Miocene of Kansas, possibly synonymous with Anaxyrus compactilis or Anaxyrus speciosus) †Anaxyrus repentinus (Tihen, 1962) (Mid-Late Pleistocene (Rancholabrean) of Kansas, possibly synonymous with Anaxyrus woodhousii or Anaxyrus cognatus) †Anaxyrus rexroadensis (Tihen, 1962) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene of Kansas) †Anaxyrus spongifrons (Tihen, 1962) (Late Miocene of Kansas) †Anaxyrus suspectus (Tihen, 1962) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene (Blancan) of Kansas) †Anaxyrus tiheni (Auffenberg, 1957) (Late Miocene of Florida) †Anaxyrus valentinensis (Estes & Tihen, 1964) (Middle Miocene (Barstovian) of Nebraska)
References
External links
Further reading Tschudi JJ (1845). "Reptilium conspectus quae in Republica Peruana reperiuntur et pleraque observata vel collecta sunt in itinere". Archiv für Naturgeschichte 11 (1): 150–170. (Anaxyrus, new genus, p. 170). (in Latin)