Ricordi's Robber Frog

Eleutherodactylus ricordii is a small frog, with females larger than males and reaching up to 40 mm in SVL. The digital discs are large. There is no webbing between the toes. The vomerine teeth, behind the choanae, are present in a long and oblique series (Schwartz and Henderson 1985; Schwartz and Henderson 1991). This frog is yellowish tan to dull brown, heavily spotted with black or dark olive-black. The venter is gray and the throat is gray with some yellowish to tan flecks (Schwartz and Henderson 1985; Schwartz and Henderson 1991).Eleutherodactylus ricordii is a member of the Eleutherodactylus ricordii group (subgenus Euhyas). Related species include Eleutherodactylus bresslerae and E. acmonis (Heinicke et al. 2007). Synonyms include Hylodes ricordii (Dumeril and Bibron 1841), Euhyas ricordii (Fitzinger 1843), and Lithodytes ricordii (Cope 1875).

This species is endemic to Cuba and it is found only in the Sierra Maestra and Sagua-Baracoa mountains, in eastern Cuba, between 290 and 1150 m in elevation. This is a terrestrial species found in mesic upland forests (Schwartz and Henderson 1991).

These frogs are nocturnal. They take shelter under rocks, logs and other objects by day. At night they are found on ground, rocks, and rocky hill slopes, along creeks and on roads. Sometimes they climb into low bushes, up to 0.3 m above the ground (Schwartz and Henderson 1991). Other aspects of the natural history of this species are unknown.

This species is threatened by habitat destruction as a result of deforestation due to agriculture, woodcutting, disturbance from tourists, and infrastructure development for human settlement (Hedges and Diaz 2004). Some natural areas in Eastern Cuba have been degraded and substituted by coffee or timber plantations, or even by pastures, inducing the extinction of this species from its original habitat (Fong 1999).

Eleutherodactylus ricordii is a species of frog in the family Eleutherodactylidae endemic to Cuba. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, and rocky areas. It is threatened by habitat loss.