Marbled Four Eyed Frog

Diagnosis A small, elongate frog, with stout legs, head long and rounded, snout not truncate, not protunding on lower jaw; glandular longitudinal ridges; no shovel-like metatarsal tubercles; dorsum speckled with clear irregular spots.

Occurs from central Peru to central Bolivia, northeastern Chile and northwestern Argentina (Jujuy province). It is present at an altitudinal range of 2500-5400 masl

Adult morphology Snout-vent of about 30-35 mm. Head long, ogival almost 1/3 of the body, slighthly wider than large. Snout round, in dorsal and lateral profile. Nostrils supero-laterally located at the same distance between eye and tip of snout. Interocular distance equal to the internarinal interval and to the width of the uppet eyelid, Canthus rostraIis round; loreal region gently sloping up to the upper lip. Maxillary teeth rudimentary; no vomerine teeth. Eye prominent, laterally located. Tongue oval, narrow, entire and free behind. Tympanum small, not evident, about 1/2 of the eye diameter. Supratympanic ridge distinct. Fingers free; rate of the finger lengths: II-IV-I-III. Subarticular and metacarpal tubercles blunt, evident, Toes largely fringed; metatarsal tubercles rounded and weak. Tarsal fold moderate. When hindleg is adpressed, heel reaches the shoulder; when the femurs ,are bent at right angles to body, the tibio-tarsal articulations touch. Skin closely and coarsely glandulous dorsally, smooth on the belly; lower surface of thighs coarsely granular. No lumbar glands present. A rounded at the mouth joint. Coloration: Dorsal ground color creamish, greenish, or brownish, scattered with bright dark brown spots. Dark bands on limbs. Ventrally whitish or immaculate. Larval morphology Tadpoles small and dark, reaching the length of 27-30 mm at the stage 38 (Gosner, 1960), with well-developed hindlimbs, The body is ovoid, slightly depressed, its length being twice the width. The snout is rounded; the mouth broad but small, of about 3 mm in width. The eyes are large, latero-dorsaIly located, being the interocular distance equal to the internarial interval, The nostrils are closer to the eyes than to the end of the snout. The spiracle is sinistral, opening laterally on the posterior half of the body; anal opening medially located, The tail is almost twice large as the body; caudal musculature well-developed, entering onto the dorsal region. Fins high, transparent, superiorly speckled with dark, ending in a pointed tip. Mouth with a simple laterally fold present, bordered by coarse marginal papillae; the median parts of the upper and lower lips are bare. Tooth rows formula: 2(2)/3. Coloration: Dorsal color of the body dark gray; ventrally paler.

LC. Least Concern.