Arthroleptis kutogundua

The holotype and only known specimen of Arthroleptis kutogundua was an adult female, collected on March 19, 1930, by herpetologist Arthur Loveridge. He incorrectly identified it as Arthroleptis adolfifriederici. The species has not been seen since then. In 2012, herpetologist David Blackburn reassessed the specimen, and identified it as a new species. His recommendation was that the species be classed as Data Deficient by the IUCN. The IUCN assessed the species on October 1, 2012, and classified it as Critically Endangered and possibly extinct.^[1][2][3]

According to Blackburn(2012), No DNA analysis has been completed on the arthroleptis kutogundua because only one holotype exists, making its evolutionary relationship to other arthroleptis species unknown. The holotype has undergone significant degradation othertime which makes it very difficult for future comparisons to be made. Many amphibians species tend to go unrecorded for decades due to a lack of spotting and inaccessibility, this species despite being found in a spot with many biodiversity surveys in the region no other specimens were found which makes the disappearance of them highly unusual. It is believed that this species may have been super sensitive to climate change, which means that the changes in temperature could have affected its survival. The poroto mountains are a very little studied amphibian hotspot which means more undiscovered species may even exist over there.^[3]