The taxonomic status of Melanophryniscus orejasmirandai Prigioni & Langone, 1987 "1986" (Anura: Bufonidae)

Abstract

Melanophryniscus orejasmirandai is a species of toad known only from two localities in southern Uruguay. This toad isthe southernmost suggested taxon of the M. tumifrons group, whose species are characterized by a glandular frontal swell-ing on the snout. The study of the type series of M. orejasmirandai and of M. pachyrhynus, along with observations madeon many specimens of both species suggested a close relationship between them. The analysis of the variation of snout-vent length, coloration pattern, relative size of the frontal swelling, and presence/absence of the metatarsal gland showedthat characters previously used to separate both species resulted of no diagnostic value. Further comparison of the externalmorphology, osteological characters, and partial sequences of the cytochrome b gene indicated that M. orejasmirandai isa junior synonym of M. pachyrhynus. Melanophryniscus pachyrhynus is characterized by a reticulated orange ventral pat-tern which is shared only with M. peritus, from which it differs by its smaller size. The ornamentation of the nasal bonesunderlying the frontal swelling in M. pachyrhynus seems to be characteristic of the M. tumifrons group. An updated distribution map of M. pachyrhynus and some new localities are also provided.

An Extraordinary New Species ofMelanophryniscus(Anura, Bufonidae) from Southeastern Brazil

“…In addition to our report of nuptial pads in M. setiba, the taxonomic distribution of nuptial pads in Melanophryniscus is poorly known. Several papers dealing with the taxonomy of the genus have omitted any reference to nuptial pads (e.g., Klappenbach, 1968;Caramaschi and Cruz, 2002;Kwet et al, 2005;Di-Bernardo et al, 2006;Steinbach-Padilla, 2008), with the notable exceptions of Cei (1980), Baldo and Basso (2004), Langone et al (2008), andBaldo et al (2012), who mention its presence but do not discuss taxonomic distribution. Nuptial pads are known to be present in M. alipioi (Langone et al, 2008), M. cambaraensis (Santos et al, 2010), M. krauczuki (Baldo and Basso, 2004), M. pachyrhynus (Baldo et al, 2012), M. rubriventris (Vaira, 2005), and M. stelzneri (Cei, 1980), and we have observed them in adult males of M. devincenzii, M. moreirae, M. simplex, and M. tumifrons.…”

“…rubriventris, M. krauczuki, andM. pachyrhynus (McDiarmid, 1971, 1972;Baldo and Basso, 2004;Baldo et al, 2012) but present and well developed in M. setiba. An anterior process on the hyale is also present in some species of Atelopus, (McDiarmid, 1971) andFrostius (Cannatella, 1986).…”

Climate Change and the Distribution of Neotropical Red-Bellied Toads (Melanophryniscus, Anura, Amphibia): How to Prioritize Species and Populations?

“…1 ). Melanophryniscus is currently represented by 26 recognized species [28] , [29] , [30] , [31] . The majority of these species exhibit naturally small distributions, and in some cases, the distribution of a species is limited to only one or two known locations.…”

“…We used data from 24 species ( Dataset S1 ), including 21 recognized species in the genus Melanophryniscus [28] , [30] and three undescribed species, hereafter referred to as M . sp.1, M .…”

An experimental assessment of the antipredatory function of green dorsal coloration in poisonous Neotropical red‐bellied toads

“…In fact, green, brown and gray are colors usually associated with crypsis (Wells 2007). Because most Melanophryniscus species have an highly contrasting coloration pattern, which is probably ancestral in this group (Baldo et al, 2012), this result lead us to hypothesize that the aposematic coloration was lost in this species. The evolution of a cryptic green dorsal coloration could be related to several non-exclusive factors, including the selection pressures imposed by a high diversity of non-specialist predators; the spatial (restricted range) and temporal (inconstant availability) rarity of the toads; or the effectiveness of its chemical defense based mainly on sequestered arthropod alkaloids.…”