''Allobates marchesianus'', also known as the dull rocket frog, is a species of frog in the family

Aromobatidae The Aromobatidae are a family of frogs native to Central and South America. They are sometimes referred to as cryptic forest frogs or cryptic poison frogs. They are the sister taxon of the Dendrobatidae, the poison dart frogs, but are not as to ...

. It is found in the

Amazon Basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about , or about 35.5 percent of the South American continent. It is located in the countries of Bolivi ...

in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. However, this species might represent a cryptic

species complex In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

, where at least the populations from Venezuela belong to an undescribed species.

Description

Adult males measure and adult females in

snout–vent length Snout–vent length (SVL) is a morphometric measurement taken in herpetology from the tip of the snout to the most posterior opening of the cloacal slit (vent)."direct line distance from tip of snout to posterior margin of vent" It is the most c ...

. The snout is short, slightly rounded in dorsal view and acutely rounded in lateral view. The anteroventral margin of the tympanum is distinct, whereas the posterodorsal margin is obscured by the supratympanic fold. The fingers and toes bear terminal discs. The toes have very weak lateral keels and some basal webbing. The dorsum is reddish brown with small brown granules. The dorsolateral stripe is distinct, light reddish brown in color. A chocolate-brown band runs from across the snout through the eye and upper tympanum, above arm insertion, and to the groin. Females have yellow throat, chest, and belly, varying in intensity among individuals, and pale yellow blotches on the flanks. Males have light gay belly and gray to dark gray throat and chest; the flanks have white blotches. Eggs are laid in

terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...

nests guarded by the male. The male or the female transports the

tadpole A tadpole is the larval stage in the biological life cycle of an amphibian. Most tadpoles are fully aquatic, though some species of amphibians have tadpoles that are terrestrial. Tadpoles have some fish-like features that may not be found i ...

s to a pond or small stream.

Habitat and conservation

''Allobates marchesianus'' occurs in secondary and

old-growth An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

tropical rainforest Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as ''lowland equatori ...

s at elevations up to

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

. It lives on the forest floor. Reproduction takes place in small pools. It is a common species but its habitat is threatened by clear cutting, logging, forest conversion, and fires. Its range includes several protected areas.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2838451 marchesianus Amphibians of Brazil Amphibians of Colombia Amphibians of Ecuador Amphibians of Peru Amphibians of Venezuela Amphibians described in 1941 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot