AnimaliaNot EvaluatedacceptedspeciesAccepted

Allobates albiventris

Souza, Ferrão, Kaefer, Cunha-Machado, Melo-Sampaio, Hanken & Lima, 2023

GBIF:212417882

0year

ABOUT

Descriptions(4)

Description of the holotype. Adult male, INPAH 45035 (Figs 4 A-C; 6 A, C; 8 A-C; Table 3). Snout-vent length 14.6 mm. Head wider than long (HW / HL = 1.04); HW equals 35 % of SVL and HL equals 33 % of SVL. Eye diameter exceeds distance from eye to nostril (EL / END = 1.33); EL equals 43 % of HL. Interorbital region flat; IOD equals 88 % of HW. Tympanum rounded, visible to the naked eye. Snout slightly rounded in dorsal and lateral view. Inter-nostril region flat; nostrils rounded, laterally positioned and visible in lateral and ventral view; IND equals 49 % of IOD. Canthus rostralis straight in dorsal view; loreal region flat. Maxillary teeth present. Median lingual process absent. Vocal sac single, subgular. Lateral folds of vocal sac present at the level of angle of maxilla. Palmar tubercle rounded and conspicuous, diameter 0.42 mm. Thenar tubercle elliptical and conspicuous, width 0.29 mm. Diameter of thenar tubercle equals 69 % of that of the palmar tubercle. Subarticular tubercles protruding, oval on finger I and rounded in other fingers; two tubercles on finger III but one in each of the others; distal tubercle smaller than proximal tubercle on finger III; tubercle on finger I larger than others. Supernumerary tubercles absent. Lateral keels on fingers I-IV, poorly defined on finger I. When placed side by side, the tip of finger IV reaches the distal subarticular tubercle of finger III. Preaxial phalangeal swelling on finger II and III. Relative length of fingers: IV

Souza, Jesus R. D., Ferrao, Miqueias, Kaefer, Igor Luis, Cunha-Machado, Antonio Saulo, Melo-Sampaio, Paulo Roberto, Hanken, James, Lima, Albertina Pimentel (2023): A new pale-ventered nurse frog (Aromobatidae: Allobates) from southwestern Brazilian Amazonia. Vertebrate Zoology 73: 647-675, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/vz.73.e103534, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/vz.73.e103534

Diagnosis. Allobates albiventris sp. nov. differs from other Allobates by the following combination of characters: males in life with a throat and vocal sac translucent white with melanophores uniformly distributed and a white belly; females in life with throat white centrally and posteriorly, translucent laterally and anteriorly, chest and belly white; small adult size, SVL 14.3 - 16.4 mm (n = 22) in males and 15.6 - 17.8 mm (n = 16) in females; one subarticular tubercle on finger IV; finger III of adult males weakly swollen; disc of finger II approximately the same width as the distal phalanx; interdigital membranes present between toes II, III and IV; paired digital scutes white; advertisement call with a duration of 42 - 60 ms and comprising two notes (the first note is smaller than the second), with an inter-note interval of 8 - 23 ms and dominant frequency of 4,953 - 6,331 Hz; exotrophic tadpoles with 2 pyramidal papillae on each end of the anterior labium, 10 - 13 pyramidal and cylindrical papillae on the posterior labium, LTRF = 2 (2) / 3 (1), gap in row A- 2 ≈ 40 % of A- 1, relative length P- 1> P- 2> P- 3, and P- 3 ≈ 65 % of P- 1.

Geographic distribution and natural history. Allobates albiventris sp. nov. is known from only five localities in southwestern Brazilian Amazonia: four in the State of Acre and one in the State of Amazonas (Figs 1 and 11). The species inhabits the leaf litter of primary and secondary ombrophilous forests at elevations between 125 and 184 m asl (Fig. 11). It has a diurnal habit and is generally active between 0500 and 1800 h, with vocal activity peaks between 0500 - 0900 h and 1600 - 1800 h. Allobates albiventris sp. nov. breeds in the rainy season between November and March. Males vocalize both on litterfall and while perched on shrubs or fallen branches up to 40 cm above ground (Fig. 8 M). Clutches are deposited on the adaxial portion of living, attached leaves of small shrubs approximately 10 - 15 cm from the ground (Fig. 12 F-H). We found eight egg clutches-three at the type locality (Manoel Urbano, Acre), four in Parque Ambiental Chico Mendes (Rio Branco, Acre) and one in Reserva Extrativista Arapixi (Boca do Acre, Amazonas). The number of eggs per clutch ranged from 17 to 31 (Fig. 12 F, G). Two clutches were found on the same leaf (nest) (Fig. 12 H). In freshly laid eggs, approximately half of the animal pole is darkly pigmented; the rest of the egg is white. The eggs are surrounded by an opaque, colloidal gel (Fig. 12 F, G), which becomes denser and more opaque over the course of larval development. Four mating pairs were observed in courtship, one at the type locality and three in Parque Ambiental Chico Mendes. Each observation began with the approach of a female to the perch where a male was emitting courtship calls. In each case, the male, perceiving the approach of a female, began to emit courtship calls interspersed with advertisement calls. He then jumped from the call perch and attempted to guide the female (Fig. 12 B) by conducting her to an oviposition site (bushes or seedlings) located up to 3 m from the perch. During the courtship march (sensu Rocha et al. 2018), which lasted between 3 and 5 min, the male continued to emit advertisement and courtship calls while the female sporadically made short stops. Once arriving at the oviposition site, the male jumped to the adaxial surface of the leaf, located 10 - 15 cm from the ground, and continued vocalizing. The female followed the male and positioned herself underneath the leaf, at the edge closest to the ground. She then observed the male, raising her head toward the leaf. In all courtships, females positioned themselves vertically, with forelimbs only lightly touching the ground, for up to 1 min before jumping to the leaf (Fig. 12 C). After the jump, the female approached the male. On one occasion, the female faced the male and put her snout on the male's pectoral region, then turned in the opposite direction. The male then climbed onto the female's back and they initiated amplexus (it was not possible to clearly discern the type of amplexus). In the other courtships, the female approached the male and quickly was grabbed by him. The male positioned himself laterally, snout to snout, and with one hand held the female's head, either by the region between the eyes and nostrils or directly on the snout (Fig. 12 D). The resulting cephalic amplexus lasted from 1 to 4 min. During and after amplexus, a barely audible vocalization (similar to " cheeps "), was emitted by the male. Following amplexus, on one occasion the male quickly jumped into the leaf litter and returned to vocalize within 3 min. In the three other courtships, the male remained on the leaf while the female deposited eggs (Fig. 12 E, H) but left the leaf before she finished. Two males initiated advertisement calls while the female was still ovipositing (Fig. 12 H), while the third left the nest without vocalizing. On two occasions oviposition started with the male still in amplexus. During oviposition, females repeatedly moved their heads upwards. This movement was interspersed with continuous clockwise or counterclockwise rotations relative to the vertical plane. Oviposition lasted ~ 11 to 15 min and ended when the female stopped the tilting motion with her head. However, she remained at the nest, on the clutch, and performed sporadic returns (apparently, hydrating the clutch, as her skin became excessively moist). Residence time of each female after oviposition ranged from 10 to 15 min, and the total time in the nest from 21 to 30 min. Males returned to the nest between 25 and 30 min after the female left, probably to hydrate the eggs and promote swelling of the surrounding jelly. We collected one clutch immediately after the female's departure, prior to the male's return, and the embryos developed normally. Only one male was observed performing larval transport (Fig. 12 I).

Etymology. The specific epithet Allobates albiventris is a combination of two Latin words, albus (white) and ventris (venter), in reference to the pale ventral coloration of the new species. Vernacular names: pale-ventered nurse frog (English), rana cuidadora de vientre blanco (Spanish), and razinha cuidadora de ventre branco (Portuguese).

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CLASSIFICATION

Taxonomic Classification Tree

AnimaliaChordataAmphibiaAnuraDendrobatidaeAllobatesAllobates albiventris

Allobates albiventris

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Figure 1. Geographic distribution of the new species (yellow symbols): Type locality = star (1 Manoel Urbano), paratype localities = circles (2 Antimary River; 3 Parque Ambiental Chico Mendes) and additional localities = rhombus (4, Feijo; 5, Reserva Extrativista Arapixi). Type localities of other Allobates to which it is compared (squares): 6 A. subfolionidificans; 7 A. flaviventris; 8 A. tinae; 9 A. gasconi (red square); 10 A. vanzolinius; 11 A. fuscellus; 12 A. velocicantus; 13 A. conspicuus; 14 A. ornatus; 15 A. trilineatus; 16 A. sieggreenae; 17 A. melanolaemus; 18 A. caeruleodactylus; 19 A. nidicola; 20 A. paleovarzensis; 21 A. grillisimilis; 22 A. tapajos; 23 A. grillicantus; 24 A. pacaas; 25 A. paleci; 26 A. kamilae. Abbreviations: BOL, Bolivia; COL, Colombia; ECU, Ecuador; PER, Peru.

Imageimage/png© Souza, Jesus R. D.;Ferrao, Miqueias;Kaefer, Igor Luis;Cunha-Machado, Antonio Saulo;Melo-Sampaio, Paulo Roberto;Hanken, James;Lima, Albertina PimentelSouza, Jesus R. D.;Ferrao, Miqueias;Kaefer, Igor Luis;Cunha-Machado, Antonio Saulo;Melo-Sampaio, Paulo Roberto;Hanken, James;Lima, Albertina Pimentel

Figure 4. Dorsal, dorsolateral and ventral views of the male holotype INPAH 45035 (A - C) and a female paratype INPAH 45051 (D - F) of Allobates albiventris sp. nov. Scale bar: 5 mm. Photographs by J. R. D. Souza.

Figure 5. Coloration of the vocal sac and throat of Allobates albiventris sp. nov. (A, B) and A. gasconi sensu stricto (C, D). Photographs by J. R. D. Souza (A, B) and A. P. Lima (C, D).

Figure 6. Ventral view of the hand (A, B) and foot (C, D) of Allobates albiventris sp. nov. (A, C) Male holotype INPAH 45035. (B, D) Female paratype INPAH 45051. Scale bar: 0.5 mm (A, B) and 1 mm (C, D). Photographs by J. R. D. Souza.

Figure 7. Paratypes of Allobates albiventris sp. nov. A Female, MPEG 44612, SVL 16.2 mm. B Male, INPAH 45038, SVL 14.7 mm. C, F Female, INPAH 45054, SVL 17.0 mm. D Male, INPAH 45060, SVL 15.6 mm. E Male, INPAH 45046, SVL 14.9 mm. G, H Male, INPAH 45064, SVL 16.4 mm. White rectangle in (G) delimits the magnified region (H) illustrating the third tubercle on toe IV (arrow). Photographs by J. R. D. Souza.

Figure 8. Coloration in life of Allobates albiventris sp. nov. from Manoel Urbano and Rio Branco, State of Acre, Brazil. A - C Male holotype, SVL 14.6 mm; D - F Female, INPAH 45051, SVL 16.8 mm; G - I Male, MNRJ 91679, SVL 16.0 mm; J - L Female, MPEG 44613, SVL 16.0 mm; M Male, uncollected; N Male, INPAH 45044, SVL 15.3 mm; O Male, uncollected. Photographs by J. R. D. Souza (A-F, J-O) and P. R. Melo-Sampaio (G-I).

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Taxonomic Classification Tree

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