Chiasmocleis haddadi Peloso, Sturaro, Forlani, Gaucher, Motta, and Wheeler, 2014

Fouquet, Antoine, Rodrigues, Miguel T. & Peloso, Pedro, 2022, A new Chiasmocleis (Anura: Microhylidae) from the eastern Guiana Shield with an amended definition of C. haddadi Peloso, Sturaro, Forlani, Gaucher, Motta, & Wheeler, 2014, Zootaxa 5200 (1), pp. 1-23 : 6-7

Chiasmocleis haddadi Peloso, Sturaro, Forlani, Gaucher, Motta, and Wheeler, 2014

Chiasmocleis hudsoni Fouquet et al. 2007

Holotype: MNHNP 2011.0139 ; Paratypes: MNHNP 2011.0140 , 2011.0143 – 2011.0145 , Mont Kotika , French Guiana .

Specimens removed from the type series: IEPA ( FL 453–455 , FL 511–513 ), IEPA ( TQ 1036 ) .

Referred specimens examined. 13 males including four paratypes, one female (Appendix 2)

Definition. A small sized species for the genus; SVL in males 12.9–14.5 mm (N = 9); in females 17.2 mm (N = 1). Body ovoid, robust; head much narrower than body, snout rounded in dorsal and lateral views. Four distinctive fingers; all fingers slightly fringed on both sides, less pronounced distally on FIII, FIV and FI, fingers unwebbed; FI reduced with a rounded or slightly pointed tip, subarticular tubercle large and well-defined; finger tips of FII – IV rounded or slightly pointed, tips of FII and III slightly swollen; adpressed FI reached the middle of subarticular tubercle of FII; adpressed FIV reaches middle or distal margin of distal tubercle of FIII; thenar tubercle present; relative finger lengths I< II < IV < III. Well-defined dorsolateral stripes enlarging posteriorly. Eyes with red iris. Upper surface of arms with brick-coloured blotches in life, grey in preservative. Five distinctive toes, first very small; toes slightly fringed, less pronounced distally on all toes, with small spicules on the fringes, toes not webbed; all toes with conspicuous subarticular tubercle; adpressed TI does not reach subarticular tubercle of TII; adpressed TV reaches the base of the middle subarticular tubercle of TIV; TII– IV with terminal discs. Thigh with ventral surface dark brown with blueish speckles in life, whitish in preservative. Some males with few small dermal spines on chin. Advertisement call with 6–8 notes, internote silences 0.035 s and dominant frequency 4.57 kHz ( Fig. 3 ).

Comparisons with related species. Chiasmocleis haddadi can be distinguished from C. hudsoni (data in parentheses) by its smaller body size (SVL range = 12.9–14.5 vs. 15.2–18.5 in males); well-defined dorsolateral stripes enlarging posteriorly (absent or poorly defined); eyes with a red iris (copper, bronze or silverfish); upper surface of arms with brick-coloured blotches (dark brown with clear speckles); larger eyes (8.9–10.2% vs. 7.7–9.3% of SVL); thigh with small light speckles over a dark background (large dark blotches on the periphery over light in preservative to orange in life background); an advertisement call with more notes (6–8 vs 5 notes), longer silences among notes (0.035 vs 0.007 s) and lower dominant frequency (4.57 vs 4.94 kHz). For comparisons with more distantly related species of Chiasmocleis see Peloso et al. (2014).

Natural history and distribution. All the observations of this species have been made during breeding events, near temporary pools on hilltops (as opposed to riverbeds pools). The males were found calling under the leaves of the leaf litter at the periphery of the water. The clutch (8– 12 eggs) is deposited in the litter near the waterline. Tadpoles are exotrophic and pelagic ( Fig 4 ).

Figures

FIGURE 3. Examples of sonograms (A) for each species and PCA (B) on the variables measured from the available records. Dotted frames depict the pattern that we considered to represent a “call” for each species.

FIGURE 4. (A) clutches of C. haddadi, each with about 8-12 eggs, found nearby calling males on the bank of a temporary pound in Itoupé, French Guiana; (B) embryo after 7 days; (C) embryo after 10 days; (D) tadpole found in small temporary puddles in Sipaliwini, Suriname (genotyped AF2231); (E-F) two imagos of C. jacki sp. nov. found in the leaf litter distant from water, AF2595 from St Eugene and AF2880 (both genotyped) from Mitaraka collected nearby the recorded calling male (not collected).