''Niceforonia'' is a genus of frogs in the family

Strabomantidae The Strabomantidae are a family of frogs native to South America. These frogs lack a free-living larval stage and hatch directly into miniature "froglets". This family includes ''Pristimantis'', the most speciose genus of any vertebrate. System ...

found in northern South America (from central Peru to Ecuador and Colombia). The name refers to Nicéforo María, Colombian

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and rept ...

Taxonomy

the genus ''Niceforonia'' was resurrected from the synonymy of ''

Phrynopus ''Phrynopus'' is a genus of frogs of the family Strabomantidae. Their common name is Andes frogs. They are endemic to Peru and inhabit the upper humid montane forest and supra-treeline grassland in the Cordillera Oriental, with one record from ...

'' by Hedges and colleagues in 2008. No genetic data exist, and Hedges ''et al.'' placed it provisionally in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Strabomantinae along with the genera ''Phrynopus'', ''

Oreobates ''Oreobates'' is a genus of frogs in the family Strabomantidae. Most species were formerly in the genus ''Ischnocnema'', but were moved to this revalidated genus following a 2006 revision. Its sister taxon is '' Lynchius''. These frogs are found ...

'', and '' Lynchius'' with which it shares a

synapomorphy In phylogenetics, an apomorphy (or derived trait) is a novel character or character state that has evolved from its ancestral form (or plesiomorphy). A synapomorphy is an apomorphy shared by two or more taxa and is therefore hypothesized to have ...

. Based on genetic data from these three genera, Padial and colleagues moved them all into the subfamily Holoadeninae in 2014.

Species

The following species are recognised in the genus ''Niceforonia'': * ''

Niceforonia adenobrachia ''Niceforonia adenobrachia'' is a species of frog in the family Strabomantidae. It is Endemism, endemic to the Cordillera Central (Colombia), Cordillera Central, Colombia, in the Caldas Department, Caldas and Tolima Departments. ''Niceforonia ad ...

'' (Ardila-Robayo, Ruiz-Carranza, and Barrera-Rodriguez, 1996) * '' Niceforonia aderca'' (Lynch, 2003) * '' Niceforonia araiodactyla'' (Duellman and Pramuk, 1999) * '' Niceforonia babax'' (Lynch, 1989) * '' Niceforonia brunnea'' (Lynch, 1975) * '' Niceforonia columbiana'' (Werner, 1899) * '' Niceforonia dolops'' (Lynch and Duellman, 1980) * '' Niceforonia elassodiscus'' (Lynch, 1973) * '' Niceforonia fallaciosa'' (Duellman, 2000) * '' Niceforonia latens'' (Lynch, 1989) * '' Niceforonia lucida'' (Cannatella, 1984) * '' Niceforonia mantipus'' (Boulenger, 1908) * '' Niceforonia nana'' Goin and Cochran, 1963 * '' Niceforonia nigrovittata'' (Andersson, 1945) * '' Niceforonia peraccai'' (Lynch, 1975)

Description

Species of the genus ''Niceforonia'' are small frogs measuring up to in snout–vent length. The head is narrower than the body and the

tympanic membrane In the anatomy of humans and various other tetrapods, the eardrum, also called the tympanic membrane or myringa, is a thin, cone-shaped membrane that separates the external ear from the middle ear. Its function is to transmit sound from the air ...

is differentiated, but in some species only the tympanic annulus is visible under skin. The dorsum is smooth to weakly tuberculate, whereas the venter is smooth or areolate. The terminal discs on digits are not expanded but usually bear weak circumferential grooves. The terminal

phalanges The phalanges (singular: ''phalanx'' ) are digital bones in the hands and feet of most vertebrates. In primates, the thumbs and big toes have two phalanges while the other digits have three phalanges. The phalanges are classed as long bones. ...

are narrow and T-shaped. Toes III and V are about equal in length (the origin of the name ''Isodactylus'').

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q2831864, from2=Q1868660 Frogs of South America Amphibians of South America Amphibian genera Taxa named by Doris Mable Cochran