NUCLEAR DNA CONTENT IN SOME GREEN TOADS ( Bufo viridis COMPLEX) OF TURKEY AND IRAN L. J. Borkin, 1 J. M. Rosanov, 2 and S. N. Litvinchuk 1,2 Submitted April 29, 2000. 15 specimens from western Turkey, northern and southern Iran were examined. According to external characters and geographic position, the toads seem to belong to B. v. viridis , to the so-called Transcaspian population group, and to B. v. kermanensis, respectively. The diploid level of toads was evidenced from DNA flow cytometry. The distribution of diploid and polyploid toads in Western Asia is discussed. Key words: Bufo viridis complex, Turkey, Iran, Genome size, DNA flow cytometry. Green toads ( Bufo viridis complex) of Western and Central Asia provide an exciting example of un- usual speciation among animals. These common toads are well known since the 18th century, although twenty five years ago only were found (Mazik et al., 1976), that some Asian members of the complex are polyploid. The taxonomy of the B. viridis complex is still quite confused. Despite a long list of synonyms, last decades, some new species and subspecies have been described by various authors (Eiselt and Schmidtler, 1971, 1973; Mertens, 1971; Hemmer et al., 1978; Pisanets, 1978a; Andrén and Nilson, 1979; Pisanets and Szczerbak, 1979; Pisanets et al., 1996; Khan, 1997; Fei et al., 1999; Stöck et al., 1999). However, as yet taxonomic position and ploidy level of many populations are unclear, and relation- ships between members of the B. viridis complex need further examination. Also the origin of poly- ploidy in these toads is in dispute (Pisanets, 1978b, 1991; Borkin et al., 1986a, 1986b, 1986c; Roth, 1986; Roth and Ráb, 1986; Borkin and Kuzmin, 1988; Kudryavtsev et al., 1988; Borkin and Sokolo- va, 1989; Mezhzherin and Pisanets, 1995a, 1995b; Stöck and Große, 1997; Stöck, 1998; Stöck et al., 1999). It is clear that a thorough revision of the B. viridis complex is greatly needed, and most advances in the study were and will be associated with an ap- plication of cytogenetic and molecular techniques. Unfortunately, some important localities are situated in the areas of political instability and local conflicts, sometimes, dangerous for foreign visitors. Cytogenetic and biochemical studies revealed three ploidy levels in green toads of Western and Central Asia. 1. Diploid populations are distributed in the Caucasus and, probably, Western Asia as well as in the northern plains of the former Soviet Middle Asia (e.g., Kryukov et al., 1985; Borkin et al., 1986a, 2001; Roth and Ráb, 1986; Stöck and Große, 1997). They are treated as a number of subspecies of B. viri- dis Laurenti, 1768. Another specific name, B. shaar- tusiensis Pisanets, Mezhzherin et Szczerbak, 1996, has been applied to green toads of southern Tadjikistan. 2. Tetraploid populations occur in the areas of the mountain ranges and, sometimes, adjacent plains, situated in the south of the former Soviet Middle Asia between the Caspian Sea and north-western China, eastwards to south-western Mongolia (e.g., Kryukov et al., 1985; Borkin et al., 1986a, 1986b, 1986c, 1995, 2001; Wu and Zhao, 1987; Dujsebayeva et al., 1997; Stöck, 1998). Currently, tetraploid populations from the former Soviet territory and Mongolia are united under the arbitrary name B. danatensis Pisanets, 1978, whereas the toads of Kashgar, Xinjiang, China were preliminary proposed to name B. nouettei Mocquard, 1910 (Stöck, 1998). Moreover, in Xin- jiang, three subspecies of B. danatensis are recog- nized by Fei et al. (1999). However, some older names are available and should be re-examined. 3. Triploid toads seem to be represented by two different kinds. 1026-2296/2000 /0703-0 171 © 2000 Folium Publishing Company Russian Journal of Herpetology Vol. 7, No. 3, 2000, pp. 171 – 180 1 Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Universitet- skaya nab. 1, St. Petersburg 199034, Russia. E-mail: borkin@spas.spb.su 2 Institute of Cytology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Tikhorets- ky pr. 4, St. Petersburg 194064, Russia.