Atelopus ignescens (Cornalia, 1849)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Anura > Family: Bufonidae > Genus: Atelopus > Species: Atelopus ignescens

Phryniscus ignescens Cornalia, 1849, Vert. Synops. Mus. Mediolanense: 14. Types: Formerly in MSNM, but likely now lost according to Conci, 1967, Atti Soc. Ital. Sci. Nat. Mus. Civ. Stor. Nat. Milano, 106: 94, and not located by Blackburn and Scali, 2014, Herpetol. Monogr., 28: 37–38. Type locality: "in locis humidus circa Latacunga prope Quito"; restated as Latacunga (2771 m), Cotopaxi Province, Ecuador, by Peters, 1955, Rev. Ecuat. Entomol. Parsitol., 2: 338. QCAZ specimen designated neotype by Coloma, Lötters, and Salas, 2000, Herpetologica, 56: 304. Neotype from "approximately 20 km (airline) southeast of Latacunga, on road from San Miguel de Salcedo to Lagunas de Anteojos and toward the east, 01° 01′ S, 78° 25′ W, approximately between 3200–3800 m, at the border between Provincias de Cotopaxi and Napo, Ecuador".

Phryniscus laevis Günther, 1858, Arch. Naturgesch., 24: 321. Syntypes: BMNH (2 specimens) by original designation. Five specimens recorded as syntypes by museum records, these being BMNH 1844.6.3.16, 1847.12.28.45 (now reregistered 1947.2.15.45), 1847.12.28.45 (now reregistered 1947.2.15.45), and 1855.6.26.7–8 (now reregistered 1947.2.14.75–76). Type localities: "Chili" (apparently in error) and "Panama"; additional specimen and locality ("Quito") given in error by Günther, 1859 "1858", Cat. Batr. Sal. Coll. Brit. Mus.: 43. Synonymy by Jiménez de la Espada, 1875, Vert. Viaje Pacif. Verif. 1862–1865: 139; Boulenger, 1880, Bull. Soc. Zool. France, 5: 41–48 (although subsequently recognized by Boulenger, 1882, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. 5, 9: 457–467); Rivero, 1963, Caribb. J. Sci., 3: 103–124; Cochran and Goin, 1970, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 288: 125.

Phrynidium laeveCope, 1867, J. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Ser. 2, 6: 196.

Atelopus laevisCope, 1868, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 20: 117; Brocchi, 1882, Miss. Scient. Mex. Amer. Centr., Rech. Zool., 3(2, livr. 2): 96.

Atelopus ignescensJiménez de la Espada, 1875, Vert. Viaje Pacif. Verif. 1862–1865: 139; Boulenger, 1894, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. 6, 14: 374–375; Peters, 1973, Smithson. Contrib. Zool., 145: 24.

Antelopus laevisOrton, 1876, Andes and the Amazons: 108. Incorrect subsequent spelling of the generic name.

Phryniscus laevis var. laevisBoettger, 1892, Kat. Batr. Samml. Mus. Senckenb. Naturforsch. Ges.: 22, by implication.

Phryniscus ignescensPhilippi, 1902, Supl. Batr. Chil. Descr. Hist. Fis. Polit. Chile: 14. According to Cei, 1958, Invest. Zool. Chilen., 4: 267, based on juvenile Chilean specimens of Bufo spinulosus.

Phryniscus laeviaPhilippi, 1902, Supl. Batr. Chil. Descr. Hist. Fis. Polit. Chile: 14. Incorrect subsequent spelling. According to Cei, 1958, Invest. Zool. Chilen., 4: 267, based on juvenile Chilean specimens of Bufo spinulosus.

Atelopus carinatus Andersson, 1945, Ark. Zool., 37A(2): 15. Holotype: NHRM 1909, according to Rivero, 1969, Mem. Soc. Cienc. Nat. La Salle, 29: 142. Type locality: "Eastern Ecuador". Synonymy by Rivero, 1963, Caribb. J. Sci., 3: 103–124; Rivero, 1969, Mem. Soc. Cienc. Nat. La Salle, 29: 142; Peters, 1973, Smithson. Contrib. Zool., 145: 24; recognized by Harding, 1983, Cat. New World Amph.: 56.

English Names

Quito Stubfoot Toad (Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 39).

Jambato Toad (Ron, Duellman, Coloma, and Bustamante, 2003, J. Herpetol., 37: 116).

Distribution

Inter-Andean valleys and higher parts of major Andean Cordilleras in central and northern Ecuador (Chimborazo, Imbabura, Pichincha, Tungurahua, and Napo provinces) and (arguably—see comment) in adjacent southern Andean Colombia (Nariño).

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Colombia, Ecuador

Comment

In the Atelopus ignescens group of Lynch, 1993, Alytes, 11: 77–87. See Rivero, 1963, Caribb. J. Sci., 3: 110–112, for review, and Cochran and Goin, 1970, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 288: 125–127, and Peters, 1973, Smithson. Contrib. Zool., 145: 24–27, for synonymy, review, and discussion. Duellman and Lynch, 1969, Herpetologica, 25: 231–240, described the tadpole. Lötters, 1996, Neotrop. Toad Genus Atelopus: 31, quoted Coloma and Salas, and other unpublished data to suggest that nominal Atelopus ignescens was a composite of several species. Coloma, Lötters, and Salas, 2000, Herpetologica, 56: 303–324, discussed the species and noted that the specimens from Colombia could not confidently be assigned to Atelopus ignescens. Ardila-Robayo and Maldonado-Silva, 2004, in Rueda-Almonacid et al. (eds.), Libro Rojo Anf. Colombia: 132–135, provided an account of this Colombian population as Atelopus "ignescens" suggesting that the populations associated with this name were part of a complex of cryptic species. Almendáriz C. and Orcés, 2004, Rev. Politécnica, Quito, 25: 105–106, provided distributional data for Ecuador. See map, description of geographic range and habitat, and conservation status in Stuart, Hoffmann, Chanson, Cox, Berridge, Ramani, and Young, 2008, Threatened Amph. World: 136, who regarded the species as extinct. Almendáriz C. and Rueda-Almonacid, 2005, in Rueda-Almonacid et al. (eds.), Ranas Arlequines: 52, provided a brief account and judged the species to be extinct.

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