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Type: Article
Published: 2020-08-14
Page range: 573–591
Abstract views: 208
PDF downloaded: 15

A new forest frog of the genus Platymantis (Amphibia: Anura: Ceratobatrachidae: subgenus Tirahanulap) from Leyte and Samar islands, eastern Philippines

National Museum of the Philippines, Herpetology Section, Zoology Division, National Museum of Natural History Building, T.F. Valencia Circle, T.M. Kalaw Street, Rizal Park, Manila 1000, Philippines. Biology Department, College of Science, De La Salle University, Manila 1004, Philippines.
Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida/IFAS, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
Biology Department, College of Science, De La Salle University, Manila 1004, Philippines. Center for Conservation Innovations Philippines, Inc., Unit 208 Civic Prime Building, Civic Drive, Filinvest Corporate City, Alabang, Muntinlupa City 1770, Philippines.
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Biodiversity Institute, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas 66045-7561, USA.
Department of Biology and Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma 73072-7029, USA.
Amphibia endemism forest conservation Pleistocene Aggregate Island Complex Platymantis hazelae Group protected areas Shrub Frogs

Abstract

We describe a new species of frog of the genus Platymantis Günther (subgenus Tirahanulap), from the east-central regions of the Philippines. It belongs to the the previously-defined P. hazelae Group) based on morphological and bioacoustic datasets. The new species is phenotypically and ecologically most similar to members of Tirahanulap, an assemblage of small-bodied arboreal frogs inhabiting montane forests of the central and northern islands of the Philippine archipelago. The new species represents the first taxon in the Cloud Frog species known from the biogeographically unique Mindanao Pleistocene Aggregate Island Complex. Particularly susceptible to local extirpation following deforestation, all known species of Tirahanulap are important indicator species for environmental and conservation assessments, making this new species not only an exceptional addition to Philippine biodiversity but also an important symbol for conservation initiatives in the region.

 

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