''Pristimantis unistrigatus'', common name: striped robber frog, is a species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

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 ...

. It is found in the

Andean The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the List of mountain ranges#Mountain ranges by length, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range i ...

valleys from southern Colombia to central Ecuador.

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 head is wider than the body in females but equal or narrower in males. The snout is rounded in lateral view and subacuminate to subovoid in dorsal view. The tympanum is visible but not distinct and partly obscured by the supratympanic fold. The finger and toe tips bear discs. Coloration is variable. The most common morph is pale brown above with an indefinite darker interorbital triangle and a series of brown spots forming dorsal chevrons. Another morph is similar to the first one but has a narrow, cream vertebral stripe running through the body. The third form is striped with several tan, medium-brown, and dark brown stripes on the back. Males have an external subgular

vocal sac The vocal sac is the flexible membrane of skin possessed by most male frogs and toads. The purpose of the vocal sac is usually as an amplification of their mating or advertisement call. The presence or development of the vocal sac is one way o ...

. The male advertisement call is a hollow click.

Distribution

''Pristimantis unistrigatus'' is found in the

Colombian Massif The Colombian Massif (from the Spanish Macizo Colombiano), also known colloquially as ''Nudo de Almaguer'', refers to a group of mountains within the Andes of south central Colombia. The massif is mainly within the area of the Cauca, Huila, and ...

in southern Colombia ( Putumayo and Nariño Departments), and in the inter-Andean valleys of Ecuador all way south to the

Chimborazo Province Chimborazo () is a province in the central Ecuadorian Andes. It is a home to a section of Sangay National Park. The capital is Riobamba. The province contains Chimborazo (6,267 m), Ecuador's highest mountain. Cantons The province is divided in ...

Habitat and conservation

''Pristimantis unistrigatus'' is a common species found in various open habitats (grasslands and cultivated areas including pastures, ditches, shrubs, croplands) as well as forest edges and even urban areas at elevations of

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 ...

. During the day these frogs hide under objects on the ground, occasionally also in arboreal

bromeliad The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a family of monocot flowering plants of about 80 genera and 3700 known species, native mainly to the tropical Americas, with several species found in the American subtropics and one in tropical west Africa, ...

s. At night they are active on vegetation and on the ground. The only threat to this species is heavy agrochemical pollution. Its range overlaps with several protected areas.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pristimantis Unistrigatus unistrigatus Amphibians of the Andes Amphibians of Colombia Amphibians of Ecuador Amphibians described in 1859 Taxa named by Albert Günther Taxonomy articles created by Polbot