Flectonotus

Abstract: Egg-brooding frogs (Hemiphractidae) are a group of 105 currently recognized Neotropical species, with a remarkable diversity of developmental modes, from direct development to free-living and exotrophic tadpoles. Females carry their eggs on the back and embryos have unique bell-shaped gills. We inferred the evolutionary relationships of these frogs and used the resulting phylogeny to review their taxonomy and test hypotheses on the evolution of developmental modes and bell-shaped gills. Our inferences relied on a total evidence parsimony analysis of DNA sequences of up to 20 mitochondrial and nuclear genes (analyzed under tree-alignment), and 51 phenotypic characters sampled for 83% of currently valid hemiphractid species. Our analyses rendered a well-resolved phylogeny, with both Hemiphractidae (sister of Athesphatanura) and its six recognized genera being monophyletic. We also inferred novel intergeneric relationships [((Cryptobatrachus, Flectonotus), (Stefania, (Fritziana, (Hemiphractus, Gastrotheca))))], the non-monophyly of all species groups previously proposed within Gastrotheca and Stefania, and the existence of several putative new species within Fritziana and Hemiphractus. Contrary to previous hypotheses, our results support the most recent common ancestor of hemiphractids as a direct-developer. Free-living aquatic tadpoles apparently evolved from direct-developing ancestors three to eight times. Embryos of the sister taxa Cryptobatrachus and Flectonotus share a pair of single gills derived from branchial arch I, while embryos of the clade including the other four genera have two pairs of gills derived from branchial arches I and II respectively. Furthermore, in Gastrotheca the fusion of the two pairs of gills is a putative synapomorphy. We propose a revised taxonomy concordant with our optimal topologies.

Abstract: In the great majority of amphibians yet investigated the occurrence of oocytes with more than one nucleus or more than a single liieiotiC figure is exceptional (Humphries, 1956,1966 ; Parnienter, Derezin andParnienter, 1960 ; Humphrey, 1963) . In the tailed frog Asca/'hus (mel, however, Macgregor and Kezer ( 1970) found that oogenesis regularly involves oocytes with eight nuclei, all but one of @yhich disappear before the final stages of oogenesis. When a related species, Leiopelnta hochstetteri, was investigated by Robinson, Stephenson and Stephenson ( 1973) , onlya single binucleate oocyte wasfoundamong 26oocytes examined. In the present paper the occurrence of niultinucleate stages as a regular feature of oogenesis in several genera of marsupial frogs of South America is reported. The multinucleate condition is associated with the early stages of oogenesis; in large, yolky oocytes only one nucleus is present. Most of the marsupial frogs are inhabitants of the humid forests of South America. In these frogs the aquatic larval stages are reduced or eliminated al together, a phenomenon associated with the fact that the female carries the em bryos on her back, either within a pouch of integument or in shallow depressions of the skin. The genera Flectonotus, Cast rotheca, and Amphignathodon are char acterized by pouches, while in Frit@iana, Crvptobatrachus, Ste fania and Henti phractus the embryos are carried in depressions of the skin. For a list of these frogs with locality and references of taxonomic interest see the work of Duellman (1976). Relatively little information is availal)le regarding reproduction and development in marsupial frogs. The relationship between mother and embryos has been studied in some detail in Gastrotheca riohanzbae, a species that carries the embryos in the potich up to the tadpole stage (see del Pino, Galarza, de Albtija, and Hum phries, 1975, for references). Among the species of Gastrotheca that carry the embryos to the young froglet stage, Gastrotheca ovif era is the best known (see Mertens, 1957, for a description of its life history and references). This report describes some features of oogenesis in 33 species of marsupial frogs that correspond to the described species of Ainphignathodon and Henzi phractus as listed by Duellman (1976), to two (of three) species of Flectonotus, one (of six) species of Stefania and 20 (of 32) species of Gastrotheca. In addi tion, the ovaries of three unnamed species of Gastrotlieca were also analyzed. The peculiarities of oogenesis have been studied in more detail in Flectonotns pvgmaeus, Gastrotheca ovif era and Gastrotheca sp., an unnanied species from Venezuela, since in these instances both living and preserved specimens were available. Living specimens of C. niarsupiata, G. excubitor, C. niertensi and C. plum bea were also

Abstract: Phylogenetic analyses of data derived from one mitochondrial gene and one nuclear gene show that the five species of small marsupial frogs currently recognized as Flectonotus are in fact two distinct and not closely related lineages. This conclusion is strongly supported by reproductive behavior and morphological characters. Thus, we recognize the genus Fritziana Mello-Leitao for the three species in southeastern Brazil and Flectonotus Miranda-Ribeiro for the two species in northern South America.

Abstract: Based on preserved specimens from the states of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Flectonotus ulei Miranda-Ribeiro, 1926 is resurrected from its synonymy with Flectonotus fissilis (Miranda-Ribeiro, 1920) and is redescribed. Analysis of osteological characters and brood pouch structure confirms that F. ulei belongs to Fritziana. The species is small for the genus (snout-vent length in males, 19.2-26.9 mm, n = 2; in females, 20.3-21 mm, n = 4) and was found in bromeliads. Flectonotus ulei is characterized by dorsal pattern consisting of interorbital pentagon or hexagon-shaped mark delimited by heavy dark line, diameter of tympanum smaller than that of disc of third digit, and a brood pouch covering the eggs dorsally except for a narrow longitudinal slit; eggs arranged in rosette.