Pristimantis nunezcortezi, Chávez & Aznaran & Wong & Victoriano-Cigüeñas & García-Ayachi & Valencia-Málaga & Ormeño & Gulman & Sumiano-Mejía & Thompson & Catenazzi, 2025

Chávez, Germán, Aznaran, Wilmar, Wong, Ivan, Victoriano-Cigüeñas, Karen Y., García-Ayachi, Luis A., Valencia-Málaga, Juan D., Ormeño, Jesús R., Gulman, Michael, Sumiano-Mejía, Ronal, Thompson, Michelle E. & Catenazzi, Alessandro, 2025, Over the top: Three new species of terrestrial breeding frogs (Anura, Terrarana, Pristimantis) from the highlands of the Cordillera de Huancabamba, northwestern Peru, Evolutionary Systematics 9 (1), pp. 145-166 : 145-166

Pristimantis nunezcortezi sp. nov.

Type material.

Holotype • Adult male CORBIDI 26786 (Figs 8 A ‒ D , 9 A ‒ E ), from Cerro Chinguelas , Huancabamba Province, Piura Region, Peru (5°7'8.15"S, 79°22'2.19"W; 2593 m a. s. l.) collected on 10 November 2023 by Karen Y. Victoriano-Cigüeñas, Ivan Wong, and Germán Chávez.

Paratype • Adult male CORBIDI 26785 (Fig. 10 A, B ), same data as holotype .

Diagnosis.

We placed Pristimantis nunezcortezi sp. nov. in the genus Pristimantis sensu Hedges et al. (2008) ; Duellman and Lehr (2009) and Padial et al. (2014), subgenus Huicundomantis (sensu Ortega et al. 2022). Pristimantis nunezcortezi sp. nov. is a medium-sized species distinguished by the following combination of traits: (1) skin on dorsum finely shagreened without conspicuous crests, folds or ridges on scapular region; skin on venter coarsely areolate; discoidal fold evident, thoracic fold present; dorsolateral folds absent; flanks areolate; skin on dorsal surfaces of limbs smooth with low rounded tubercles; (2) tympanic membrane present, tympanic annulus present, its length about 42 % of the length of eye; supratympanic fold evident going from the posterior edge of the orbit to the level of the insertion of forelimbs; (3) snout short, subacuminate in dorsal view, rounded in profile; canthus rostralis straight; (4) upper eyelid lacking tubercles, about 50 % IOD in males, females unknown; (5) dentigerous processes of vomers present, low, triangular, moderately separated, posteromedial to choanae; (6) males having vocal slits; (7) Finger I slightly shorter than Finger II (Fig. 9 C ); discs on fingers broadly expanded except in finger I, elliptical; (8) fingers lacking lateral fringes; (9) ulnar tubercles rounded, low; (10) heel bearing one conical tubercle, tarsus having low rounded tubercles; (11) inner metatarsal tubercle elliptical, elevated, about 4 times the size of round outer metatarsal tubercle; supernumerary tubercles prominent; (12) toes with lateral fringes; basal webbing on feet; Toe V longer than Toe III (disc on Toe III reaches distal edge of the penultimate subarticular tubercle on Toe IV, disc on Toe V reaches the proximal edge of the distal subarticular tubercle on Toe IV) (Fig. 9 D ); (13) in life, dorsum yellowish brown to reddish brown, minute red speckles are visible; light yellow trapezoidal mark on the occipital-scapula region; groins, axillae and posterior surface of thighs having orange-pink bordered black blotches; venter chrome orange; iris gold to orange-yellow on the upper half, copper to scarlet red on the lower half with thin dark reticulations (Figs 8 A , 10 B ); (14) SVL of two adult males 31.7 and 38.0 mm; females: unknown.

Comparisons.

Pristimantis nunezcortezi sp. nov. looks similar to P. cryptomelas , but can be differentiated by (conditions for P. cryptomelas in parenthesis) lacking conspicuous occipital-scapular folds or ridges (vs present), lacking tubercles on the upper eyelid (vs two or three large tubercles present), skin on flanks areolate (vs shagreen), and by having one low conical tubercle on heels (vs bearing one large conical and several small rounded tubercles). Also, P. nunezcortezi shares with P. aaptus , P. coronatus , P. atrabracus , and P. melanogaster a black coloration on groins. Nevertheless, P. nunezcortezi is easily distinguished by lacking interorbital bar and transversal bars on limbs (vs present in P. aaptus ), having the skin on the upper eyelid shagreen (vs smooth in P. aaptus , tuberculate in P. coronatus ), tympanic annulus and tympanic membrane evident (vs absent in P. coronatus , tympanic annulus absent in P. aaptus ), toe V longer than toe III (vs toe V shorter than toe III in P. atrabracus and P. melanogaster ), and disc on fingers and toes I and II narrower than rest of fingers and toes (vs discs on fingers and toes uniformly narrow). Additionally, it differs from all members of the P. cryptomelas group (sensu Páez and Ron 2019) by lacking postocular ridges and prominent tubercles (vs postocular ridges or folds, and prominent tubercles on upper eyelid, heels and tarsus present in all species of this group).

Description of the holotype.

An adult male ( CORBIDI 26786 ). Measurements (in mm): SVL 38.0; TL 21.8; FL 20.7; HL 14.2; HW 15.7; ED 4.2; TD 2.0; IOD 5.5; EW 2.9; IND 3.1; EN 4.9; FeL 19.2. Head wider than long, narrower than body; snout subacuminate in dorsal view, rounded in profile, lacking papilla or flaps on the tip of the snout (Fig. 9 E ); cranial crests absent; nostrils low, directed anterolaterally; canthus rostralis straight in dorsal view, rounded in cross section; loreal region concave; upper eyelid lacking tubercles; tympanic annulus present, visible through the skin, its upper and posterolateral edge concealed by a thick supratympanic fold; tympanic membrane visible; postrictal tubercles absent. Choanae median, ovoid, non-concealed by palatal shelf of maxilla; dentigerous processes of vomers present, triangular, moderately separated, posteromedial to choanae; tongue slightly longer than wide, not notched, posterior half free; vocal slits slightly curved, positioned at posterior half of mouth floor in between tongue and margin of jaw; vocal sac size unknown. Dorsal surfaces of body finely shagreen; skin on flanks areolate; skin on dorsal surface of limbs shagreened bearing low, rounded tubercles; skin on belly coarsely areolate, that on throat weakly areolate, ventral surfaces of limbs areolate, ventral surfaces of thighs coarsely areolate; discoidal fold present, thoracic fold prominent. Ulnar tubercles low, rounded; nuptial pads present; outer palmar tubercle slightly bifid low, as large as ovoid thenar tubercle; subarticular tubercles low, rounded; large, prominent supernumerary tubercles at base of fingers; fingers lacking lateral fringes; Finger I slightly shorter than Finger II; discs on fingers expanded and rounded; pads on fingers surrounded by circumferential grooves on all fingers (Fig. 9 C ). Hindlimbs slender; dorsal surfaces of hindlimbs shagreen; posterior surfaces of thighs smooth, ventral surfaces of thighs coarsely areolate; heel having a low conical tubercle; outer edge of tarsus bearing low, rounded tubercles; inner metatarsal tubercle elliptical, elevated, three times the size of oval outer metatarsal tubercle; plantar surface with small, low and rounded supernumerary tubercles; subarticular tubercles prominent, rounded; toes bearing lateral fringes; basal webbing between all toes; discs on toes smaller than those on fingers, expanded and rounded; all toes having pads surrounded by circumferential grooves; relative lengths of toes: I <II <III <V <IV; Toe V longer than Toe III (disc on Toe III reaches the distal edge of penultimate subarticular tubercle on Toe IV, disc on Toe V reaches the proximal edge of distal subarticular tubercle on Toe IV; (Fig. 9 D ).

Coloration of holotype in life. Based on photographs taken in the field. Dorsal surfaces of body reddish brown, areolate areas on flanks orange, minute red speckles on all dorsum; canthal area yellowish brown; groins, anterior and posterior surface of thighs, and posterior surface of shanks having large orange bordered black blotches; dorsal surfaces of limbs reddish brown; throat, chest, belly and ventral surface of hind limbs chrome orange; plantar and palmar surfaces reddish brown with small black blotches; iris with fine black reticulations, gold on the upper half, copper on the lower half (Fig. 8 A – D ).

Coloration of holotype in preservative. Dorsal surfaces of body and flanks dark brown fading lighter at the edge of the flanks and venter; groins, anterior, and posterior surfaces of thighs, and shanks black; throat and chest yellow; belly creamy yellow suffused with dark flecks; ventral surfaces of limbs creamy yellow with gray blotches; ventral surfaces of fingers and toes creamy yellow with gray blotches (Fig. 9 A – E ).

Variation. Measurement’s variation is given in table 1 and color variation in the paratype CORBIDI 26785 is shown in fig. 10.

Distribution, natural history and conservation status.

This species is only known from the type locality on the eastern slope of Cerro Chinguelas (Fig. 1 ), in a small rocky stream (Fig. 7 B ) that crosses the Sapalache – El Carmen road, at 2,593 m a. s. l. The streambed can be walked from the road for 200 meters until a rocky wall that blocks access upstream. The habitat is a secondary forest with trees up to 15 m tall, scattered shrubs, tree ferns, bromeliads and herbaceous plants. The soil is wet, covered by leaf litter and some fallen trunks, fungi colonies and lichens. Also, we noticed the presence of farms around this stream. Both individuals CORBIDI 26785 and CORBIDI 26786 were observed at night, during the rainy season, perched on leaves, about 1.8–2 m from the ground. No calls were recorded. In addition, we observed P. galdi and P. muscosus in sympatry with the new species. Pristimantis nunezcortezi sp. nov. has presumably a small distribution range, its area of occupancy is far less than 10 km 2 and is only known for a single locality. Since we only recorded two individuals, the species’ distribution extension, population size and conservation status are unknown. Therefore, according to the IUCN Red List guidelines (IUCN, 2019) we suggest that this species should be placed in the Data Deficient (DD) category of the IUCN Red List.

Etymology.

the specific epithet, is a patronym for Elio Nuñez-Cortez, a Peruvian ornithologist, in recognition for his contribution to the conservation of the Cordillera de Huancabamba, and for his valuable support and guidance in every one of the expeditions performed by this team. The species epithet is formed from the combination of words of the last name “ Nuñez-Cortez ” as a noun in the genitive case, with the latin suffix “ i ”.

Figures

Figure 1. Map showing localities of distribution of the Pristimantis species described herein. White square = P. chinguelas type locality, red triangle = P. nunezcortezi type locality, blue star = P. yonke type locality and blue romboid = second known locality for P. yonke.

Figure 7. Habitat in the localities inhabited by the new species described herein. A. Habitat in the type locality of P. chinguelas sp. nov.; B. Stream where we found P. nunezcortezi sp. nov.; C. Primary forest in the type locality of P. yonke sp. nov.; D. Panoramic view of the primary forest in the type locality of P. yonke sp. nov.

Figure 8. Dorsolateral (A), ventral (B), lateral (C), and dorsal (D) view of the holotype (CORBIDI 26786) of Pristimantis nunezcortezi sp. nov. in life.

Figure 9. Holotype of Pristimantis nunezcortezi sp. nov. in preservative (CORBIDI 26786). A. Dorsal; B. Ventral view of the body; C. Ventral view of the right hand; D. Ventral view of the right foot; E. Lateral view of the head. Scale bars: 5 mm.

Figure 10. Dorsal (A) and dorsolateral (B) view of Pristimantis nunezcortezi paratype (CORBIDI 26785) in life.