LYNCH, J. D.
: TWO NEW FROGS (ELEUTHERODACTYLUS) FROM THE SERRANÍA DEL PERIJÁ, COLOMBIA 613
ZOOLOGÍA
TWO NEW FROGS (ELEUTHERODACTYLUS) FROM
THE SERRANÍA DE PERIJÁ, COLOMBIA
por
John D. Lynch 1
Resumen
Lynch, J. D.: Two new frogs (Eleutherodactylus) from the Serranía de Perijá, Colombia. Rev.
Acad. Colomb. Cienc. 27 (105): 613-617, 2003. ISSN 0370-3908.
Se describen dos especies nuevas de Eleutherodactylus de la parte norte de la Serranía del Perijá.
Una especie es parecida a una conocida en la Cordillera de Mérida y la otra se parece a una hallada
en la Cordillera Oriental, en Norte de Santander y Santander.
Palabras clave: Colombia, Eleutherodactylus, especies nuevas, taxonomía.
Abstract
Two new species of the genus Eleutherodactylus are described from the northern part of the
Serranía del Perijá. One species is similar to a species known from the Cordillera de Mérida and the
other resembles a species known from the Cordillera Oriental in Norte de Santander and Santander.
Key words: Colombia, Eleutherodactylus, new species, taxonomy.
Introduction Materials and methods
The least-known upland region of Colombia for frogs Terminology follows Lynch & Duellman (1997). The
of the genus Eleutherodactylus is the Serranía del Perijá. following abbreviations are used in the text: E-N, eye to
Its eastern face in Venezuela is likewise poorly-known. In nostril distance, HW, greatest head width, IOD, interorbital
2001, Daniel Cuentas, then of Barranquilla, made two distance, SVL, snout-vent length. ICN is the acronym for
attempts to collect frogs on the western face in the the Instituto de Ciencias Naturales.
municipality of Manaure, César, and, before being ordered
Eleutherodactylus cuentasi sp. nov.
out of the area by guerrilleros, Cuentas succeeded in
collecting two species of Eleutherodactylus, each Holotype: ICN 46187, an adult male obtained by Daniel
undescribed, from a small area at 2800m. Cuentas Montalvo, May 12, 2001 (field number DC 475).
1 Laboratorio de Anfibios, Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. jlynch@[Link]
614 REV. ACAD. COLOMB. CIENC.: VOLUMEN XXVII, NÚMERO 105-DICIEMBRE DE 2003
Paratypes: ICN 46188-89, adult males taken with the diameter, tympanum length 44.8-54.3 % eye length; a sin-
holotype. gle postrictal tubercle; choanae small, round, not
concealed by palatal shelf of maxillary arch; vomerine
Type-locality: COLOMBIA; Departamento de César, odontophores median and posterior to choanae, oval,
municipio de Manaure, Casa de Cristal, Serranía del Perijá, bearing slightly elevated row of 2-5 teeth, separated
2800 msnm. medially by space nearly equal width of an odontophore;
Referred specimen: ICN DC172, adult female tongue longer than wide, posterior 1/5 not adherent to
topotype. floor of mouth, posterior edge not notched; vocal slits
long, well lateral on floor of mouth; vocal sac subgular.
Diagnosis: (1) skin of dorsum shagreen with flat warts,
that of venter areolate; short dorsolateral folds present; Skin of dorsum shagreen and bearing relatively large,
(2) tympanum round, its length 45-54 % that of eye; (3) flat warts, especially posteriorly and laterally; short
snout short, subacuminate in dorsal view, rounded in dorsolateral fold on anterior 1/3—1/2 of body which then
profile; canthus rostralis sharp; (4) upper eyelid narrower breaks up into scattered tubercles; skin of venter areolate;
than interorbital distance, no cranial crests; (5) vomerine discoidal folds not apparent; 2-4 ulnar tubercles, partially
odontophores oval; (6) vocal sac and nuptial pad present fused to form low fold along forearm; underside of forearm
in males; (7) first finger shorter than second; fingers lack areolate; palmar tubercle bifid (or divided); thenar
disks but with ventral pads; (8) fingers bear lateral keels; tubercle oval, smaller than palmar tubercle(s); supernu-
(9) ulnar tubercles present, fusing to form ridge; (10) round merary palmar tubercles numerous, nonconical; digits
tubercle on heel; outer tarsal fold present; short inner tarsal short with lateral fringes (Figure 1); subarticular tubercles
fold; (11) inner metatarsal tubercle oval, 1.5 times size of nonconical, simple; finger tips not expanded into discs,
outer; numerous supernumerary plantar tubercles; (12) Fingers III-IV bearing ventral pads with obvious distal
toes with lateral fringes, no webbing and no disks; Toe V circumferential grooves but proximal edge poorly
slightly longer than Toe III; (13) gray-brown above with defined; thumb of male swollen and nuptial pad diffuse;
brown spots; venter cream with brown reticulation; pos- finger I slightly shorter than finger II.
terior surfaces of thighs brown with darker spots; (14) Round tubercle on heel; fleshy fold along outer edge
adults small, three males 22.0-24.9 mm SVL, one adult of tarsus (sometimes a series of low, isolated tubercles);
female 30.6 mm SVL. short thickened fold on distal 1/3—1/2 of inner edge of
The only other species of the Cordillera Oriental tarsus; inner metatarsal tubercle twice as long as wide,
lacking disks is E. nicefori. However, in E. nicefori, the elevated, 1 1/5 times size of flat outer; plantar surface
fifth toe reaches to the distal subarticular tubercle of Toe dense with low supernumerary tubercles; subarticular
V whereas in E. cuentasi the fifth toe is only slightly tubercles round, simple; toes bearing lateral fringes; toe
longer than the third. The skin of the dorsum of E. nicefori V to just beyond (1/4) penultimate subarticular tubercle
is smooth and there are no dorsolateral folds nor does E. of toe IV, toe III to barely beyond distal edge of penultimate
nicefori have ulnar and outer tarsal folds. Eleuthero- subarticular tubercle of toe IV (Figure 1); toes lack disks
dactylus nicefori is smaller than E. cuentasi (Lynch, 1994). but bearing ventral pads with distal terminal grooves
(except on Toe I); when flexed hindlimbs held perpendi-
Among species reported for Venezuela, E. cuentasi is most
cular to sagittal plane, heels not touching; hindlegs short,
similar to E. boconoensis but E. cuentasi has ulnar
shank 32.7-38.9 % SVL.
tubercles (no fold) and tubercles along the outer edge of
the tarsus (no fold). Coloration in alcohol: Dorsum gray-brown with brown
spots; pale vertebral raphe in holotype and ICN ; brown
Description: Head as long as wide, narrower than body;
canthal stripe continuing as brown postocular stripe
HW 32.5-37.2 % SVL; snout subacuminate in dorsal view,
halfway down flanks; lips not barred; ventral surfaces
rounded in profile; nostrils not protuberant, directed
cream with brown reticulum or brown with cream spots;
laterally; E-N 62.1-88.0 % eye length; canthus rostralis
posterior surfaces of thighs pale brown with darker brown
slightly concave, sharp; loreal region weakly concave,
spots.
sloping abruptly to lips; lips not flared; interorbital space
flat, no cranial crests, broader than upper eyelid; upper Coloration in life: Dorsum maroon with yellow verte-
eyelid width 59.3-71.4 % IOD; supratympanic fold little bral raphe; flanks maroon; brown stripe from snout to groin;
evident, obscuring upper edge of tympanum; tympanum venter white with brown reticulation; throat yellow; tips
round, visible, separated from eye by less than half its of digits yellow.
LYNCH, J. D.: TWO NEW FROGS (ELEUTHERODACTYLUS) FROM THE SERRANÍA DEL PERIJÁ, COLOMBIA 615
most similar to E. cuentasi but has a longer Toe V and
lacks folds along the forearm and outer tarsus.
Eleutherodactylus reclusus sp. nov.
Holotype: ICN 46181, adult male, one of a series
collected by Daniel Cuentas 12 May 2001.
Paratypes: ICN 46179-80, 46182-84, males collected
syntopically.
Referred specimens: ICN 46185-86, juvenile females
collected with holotype.
Type-locality: COLOMBIA; Departamento de César,
municipio de Manaure, Casa de Cristal, Serranía del Perijá,
2800 msnm.
Diagnosis: (1) Skin of anterior dorsum smooth, low
warts evident on lower back; skin of venter areolate; no
dorsolateral folds; (2) tympanum slightly higher than
long, its length 27-42 % eye length; (3) snout subacumi-
nate in dorsal view, rounded in profile; canthus rostralis
slightly concave, distinct; (4) upper eyelid without
tubercles, about as wide as IOD; no cranial crests; (5)
Figure 1. Ventral views of foot (ICN 46187) and hand (ICN vomerine odontophores prominent, subtriangular in
46188) of Eleutherodactylus cuentasi. Scale equals 2 mm.
outline, well separated; (6) males with subgular vocal sac
and nuptial pads; (7) first finger shorter than second;
Measurements of holotype in mm.: SVL 24.9, shank fingers expanded into disks only slightly wider than digit;
8.4, HW 8.1, head length 7.5, chord of head length 8.1, (8) fingers bearing lateral keels; (9) a row of low ulnar
upper eyelid width 1.6, IOD 2.7, tympanum length 1.3, tubercles present; (10) no tubercle on heel; tubercle on
inner edge of tarsus, row of low tubercles along outer edge
eye length 2.9, E-N 1.8.
of tarsus; (11) two metatarsal tubercles, inner oval, 3 ti-
Etymology: Named for my friend Daniel Cuentas. mes size of faint outer; (12) toes bearing indistinct lateral
fringes; Toe V longer than Toe III, reaching base of distal
Natural history: Only very limited data are available subarticular tubercle of Toe IV; (13) Dorsum and flanks
owing to problems of orden público. All four individuals gray brown with little evidence of pattern; venter cream
were found beneath rocks and are adults. suffused with brown; posterior surfaces of thighs brown
with some cream spots; (14) Adults moderate-sized, six
Remarks: Phenetically, E. cuentasi resembles E.
adult males 25.2-32.4 mm SVL.
nicefori, distributed about 300 kms to the south.
Eleutherodactylus cuentasi is probably more widely Most similar to E. anolirex and E. bacchus from the
distributed but the only frog collections available from Cordillera Oriental of Colombia. Eleutherodactylus
the Serranía del Perijá are from sites below 2000 m (Mu- anolirex has short dorsolateral folds, lacks vocal slits and
nicipio Jagua de Iberico). a pale stripe on the upper lip. Eleutherodactylus bacchus
is easily distinguished in lacking nuptial pads, having
Eleutherodactylus cuentasi is probably not closely larger digital disks, and in lacking tubercles along the
related to E. nicefori based on the differences in the outer edges of the forearm and tarsus.
lengths of Toe V (Lynch & Duellman, 1997). Lynch (1994)
noted that E. colostichos of the Mérida Andes and E. Description: Head not as wide as body, wider than
nicefori shared the same state of pedal morphology long; HW 37.1-40.4 % SVL; snout subacuminate in dor-
(condition C of Lynch & Duellman, 1997), in contrast to sal view, rounded in lateral profile; nostrils not protube-
other species from the higher parts of the Mérida Andes rant, direceted dorsolaterally; E-N 76.2-88.9 % eye length;
(condition B except for E. ginesi with condition A). canthus rostralis weakly concave; loreal region concave,
Eleutherodactylus boconoensis is the described species sloping abruptly to lips; lips not flared; upper eyelid
616 REV. ACAD. COLOMB. CIENC.: VOLUMEN XXVII, NÚMERO 105-DICIEMBRE DE 2003
lacking tubercles; no cranial crests; upper eyelid width
89.7-103.0 % IOD; supratympanic fold thick, not
prominent, obscuring upper edge of tympanum; tympanum
slightly higher than long, its length 27.0-41.7 % eye
length; one or two nonconical postrictal tubercles
posteroventral to tympanic annulus; choanae round, not
concealed by palatal shelf of maxillary arch; vomerine
odontophores median and posterior to choanae, separated
medially by distance 1 ½ times width of an odontophore,
each about size of a choanae, each bearing 1-3 teeth (mode
3) arranged in transverse row; odontophores slanted in
smaller specimens, subtriangular in adults; tongue longer
than wide, not notched posteriorly, posterior ¼ not
adherent to floor of mouth; vocal slits posterolateral to
tongue, long; vocal sac subgular, median.
Skin of head and back mostly smooth but very low Figure 2. Lateral view of head of Eleutherodactylus reclusus
(ICN 46181).
flattened warts visible on lower back, that of flanks bearing
more pungent warts, of venter areolate; discoidal folds well
anterior to groin; no anal sheath; two to four low ulnar
tubercles along outer edge of forearm; palmar tubercle bifid, for cream line along upper lip (Figure 2); brown
much larger than oval thenar; low supernumerary palmar supratympanic stripe; brown blotch on posterior flank,
tubercles present; subarticular tubercles round, nonconical; extending into groin and along of thigh; comparable
some evidence of lateral fringes, best seen on lateral edge blotch over most of posterior surface of thigh, bearing
of IV and halfway down palm (in most specimens, fingers cream flecks or not; venter cream, heavily mottled with
seem to lack lateral fringes or to present mere keels); fingers brown; throat somewhat darker than venter; underside of
II-IV with disks about 1 ½ times width of digit; finger I shank brown with cream flecks or not.
with disk scarcely wider than digit; disks rounded distally,
bearing ventral pads broader than long, defined by Coloration in life: Dorsum gray with tiny white spots;
circumferential grooves; first finger shorter than second; side of head brown; posterior surfaces of thighs maroon;
nuptial pads in males. venter white with small brown spots; throat brown with
white flecks.
Heel lacking tubercles (or, if present, very small in
smallest individuals—juveniles); outer edge of tarsus with Measurements of holotype in mm.: SVL 30.9, shank
4 low tubercles distributed along length of tarsus; inner 14.9, HW 12.5, head length 10.8, chord of head length
edge of tarsus with elongate tubercle on distal 1/3; inner 11.5, upper eyelid width 3.1, IOD 3.2, tympanum length
metatarsal tubercle slightly more than twice as long as 1.5, eye length 3.6, E-N 3.2.
wide, 3-4 times size of very low and indistinct outer Etymology: Latin, meaning separated or removed, in
metatarsal tubercle; supernumerary plantar tubercles allusion to its geographic isolation from similar frogs.
numerous, all very low; subarticular tubercles round, sim-
ple, nonconical; toes bearing lateral keels, tip of Toe III Natural history: Nothing is known of the species
to midpoint of penultimate subarticular tubercle of Toe except that all adults found were adult males and juvenile
IV, tip of Toe V to base of distal subarticular tubercle of females (19.3-25.1 mm SVL) were found beneath the same
Toe IV; all toes with disks, largest on toes III-V, but rocks. The smaller juvenile female (ICN 46186) has an
narrower than those of outer fingers; ventral pads defined obvious canthal stripe and supratympanic fold, slanting
by circumferential grooves, broader than long; when brown bars on the flanks, and her throat and venter are
flexed hindlegs held perpendicular to sagittal plane, heels cream—suggesting ontogenetic changes in color pattern
overlapping; shank 45.9-49.6 % SVL. for the species.
Coloration in alcohol: Upper surfaces slate with little Remarks: Eleutherodactylus reclusus may be a near
indication of pattern (scattered darker markings on lower relative of E. anolirex but until a cladistic analysis is
back, traces of a pale interorbital bar, fragments of limb carried out, the linking of these two species is merely
bars); side of head darker without facial markings except phenetic.
LYNCH, J. D.: TWO NEW FROGS (ELEUTHERODACTYLUS) FROM THE SERRANÍA DEL PERIJÁ, COLOMBIA 617
Discussion Bibliographic references
Prior to these descriptions, only two species of Lynch, J. D. 1994. A new species of high-altitude frog (Eleutherodactylus:
Eleutherodactylus had been reported for the Serranía de Leptodactylidae) from the Cordillera Oriental of Colombia.
Rev. Acad. Colomb. Cienc. 19: 195-203.
Perijá (Lynch, 2003, Lynch & Rueda, 1997), both from
somewhat lower elevations (ca 1800 m) and each known as . 2003. New species of frogs (Eleutherodactylus:
well from Santander and Norte de Santander (and in one Leptodactylidae) from the Cordillera Oriental of Norte de
Santander and Santander, Colombia. Rev. Acad. Colomb. Cienc.
case from the Cordillera de Mérida). Futher attention to the 27 (104): 449-460.
Perijá fauna is best deferred until additional species are
Lynch, J. D. & W. E. Duellman. 1997. Frogs of the Genus
described from Jagua de Iberico (Lynch & Rueda, in prep.).
Eleutherodactylus (Leptodactylidae) in Western Ecuador:
Systematics, Ecology, and Biogeography. University of Kansas
Acknowledgments Natural History Museum, Special Publication (23): 1-236.
Lynch, J. D. & J. V. Rueda-A. 1997. Three new frogs (Eleuthero-
Daniel Cuentas kindly made his small collection from
dactylus: Leptodactylidae) from cloud forests in eastern De-
the Serrania de Perijá available for study and donated the partamento Caldas, Colombia. Rev. Acad. Colomb. Cienc. 21:
specimens to ICN. Enrique LaMarca hosted me during 131-142.
two visits to Mérida and made the collections of the Uni-
versidad de Los Andes available for study.
618 REV. ACAD. COLOMB. CIENC.: VOLUMEN XXVII, NÚMERO 105-DICIEMBRE DE 2003