Vocalizations, morphological variation, and morphometry of Pristimantis gutturalis (Anura: Strabomantidae)

Abstract

Pristimantis gutturalis is a species of the P. conspicillatus group described from French Guiana, with distribution so far restricted to the eastern Guiana Shield. Some aspects of this species are yet understudied, including its vocal repertoire which is unknown to date. Although in its original description it was properly characterized with regard to morphology, the description of its coloration in life consisted of brief remarks based on field notes on two females only. Moreover, little morphometric data were presented in its description, with detailed measurements provided for the holotype (a female) only. Subsequent studies have only briefly addressed this species and have not presented significant new data on it. In order to improve the knowledge on P. gutturalis, based on data from the state of Amapá, northern Brazil, in the present study we describe for the first time the advertisement and territorial calls of this species, assess its morphological and chromatic variation, provide detailed morphometric data on males and one female, and briefly comment on its natural history. Additionally, we compare the advertisement call of P. gutturalis with calls of other species of the P. conspicillatus group, and make some remarks on the acoustics of this group.

Keywords

• Advertisement call
• Bioacoustics
• Eastern Guiana Shield
• Phenotypic variation
• PrPristimantis conspicillatus group
• Taxonomy