Nymphargus megistus (Rivero, 1985)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Anura > Family: Centrolenidae > Subfamily: Centroleninae > Genus: Nymphargus > Species: Nymphargus megistus

Centrolenella megista Rivero, 1985, Brenesia, 23: 353. Holotype: MHNCSJ 0294, by original designation; lost according to Rada and Guayasamin, 2008, Pap. Avulsos Zool., São Paulo, 48: 93, who designated MHNCSJ 0291 as neotype. Type locality: "Urrao, Parque Las Orquídeas (Polo), 1700–1800 m, Antioquia, Colombia". Neotype is from the original type locality.

Centrolenella megistra Rivero, 1985, Brenesia, 23: 353. Incorrect original spelling according to Rada and Guayasamin, 2008, Pap. Avulsos Zool., São Paulo, 48: 92.

Cochranella megistraRuiz-Carranza and Lynch, 1991, Lozania, 57: 22.

Cochranella megistaRada and Guayasamin, 2008, Pap. Avulsos Zool., São Paulo, 48: 92.

"Cochranella" megistaGuayasamin, Castroviejo-Fisher, Trueb, Ayarzagüena, Rada, and Vilà, 2009, Zootaxa, 2100: 57.

Nymphargus megistus — Trageser, Maynard, Culebras, Kohn, Quezada Riera, and Guayasamin, 2021, Phyllomedusa, 20: 30. 

English Names

Urrao Cochran Frog (Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 47).

Greater Andean Glassfrog (Trageser, Maynard, Culebras, Kohn, Quezada Riera, and Guayasamin, 2021, Phyllomedusa, 20: 30). 

Distribution

Western slope of the Cordillera Occidental in Antioquia, Risaralda, Valle de Cauca, and Chocó departments, Colombia (4° 50′ N–7° 20′ N), 1700–2100 m elevation; cloud forest in Río Manduriacu Reserve, Imbabura Province, and near Mindo, Pichincha Province, northwestern Ecuador, 1850 to 1857 m elevation. 

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Colombia, Ecuador

Comment

In the Cochranella ocellata group according to Ruiz-Carranza and Lynch, 1991, Lozania, 57: 1–30. Placed in the Cochranella spinosa group by Savage, 2002, Amph. Rept. Costa Rica: 365. See account by Rada and Guayasamin, 2008, Pap. Avulsos Zool., São Paulo, 48: 89–101. See statement of geographic range, habitat, and conservation status (as Cochranella megistra) in Stuart, Hoffmann, Chanson, Cox, Berridge, Ramani, and Young, 2008, Threatened Amph. World: 613. Guayasamin, Castroviejo-Fisher, Trueb, Ayarzagüena, Rada, and Vilà, 2009, Zootaxa, 2100: 57, considered this species to be incertae sedis within Centroleninae. Trageser, Maynard, Culebras, Kohn, Quezada Riera, and Guayasamin, 2021, Phyllomedusa, 20: 27–35, provided molecular evidence to place this species unambiguously in Nymphargus, the sister taxon of Nymphargus grandisonae, and they provided the first records from Ecuador (Río Manduriacu Reserve, Imbabura Province, and near Mindo, Pichincha Province), both in Chocoan northwestern Ecuador, including discussion of morphology and natural history. 

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