''Yunganastes'' is a small 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 southern Peru and central to northern Bolivia. They were formerly placed in the genus ''

Eleutherodactylus ''Eleutherodactylus'' is a genus of frogs in the family Eleutherodactylidae.Hedges, S. B., W. E. Duellman, and M. P. Heinicke . 2008. New World direct-developing frogs (Anura: Terrarana): molecular phylogeny, classification, biogeography, and co ...

'' as the "''Eleutherodactylus fraudator'' group", subsequently moved to ''

Pristimantis ''Pristimantis'' is a very large genus of frogs distributed in the southern Caribbean islands (Lesser Antilles) and in Central and South America from Honduras to northern Argentina and southern Brazil. With 596 described species (as of October 20 ...

'', before becoming recognized as a separate

subgenus In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...

, and finally, a genus. Its

sister taxon In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and t ...

is the genus ''Pristimantis''. ''Yunganastes'' are endemic to the

cloud forest A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud c ...

s and humid montane forests of the Cordillera Oriental of the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

and southern

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

Etymology

The generic name ''Yunganastes'' is derived from '' yunga'', the humid forests of the Andean valleys, and the Greek ''nastes'' for "dweller". This refers to the typical habitat of frogs in this genus.

Description

''Yunganastes'' are robust-bodied and moderate to medium-sized frogs. Males can reach and females in snout–vent length. The limbs are moderately long. The head is as wide or wider than the body; the snout is short. The tympanum is visible, and the supra-tympanic fold is well-developed. The toes have rudimentary or no webbing. Males have a large

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 single melodic whistle with

frequency modulation Frequency modulation (FM) is the encoding of information in a carrier wave by varying the instantaneous frequency of the wave. The technology is used in telecommunications, radio broadcasting, signal processing, and Run-length limited#FM: .280. ...

and relatively low dominant frequency of about 1200–1500 Hz.

Species

There are five species: * ''

Yunganastes ashkapara ''Yunganastes ashkapara'' is a species of frog in the family Strabomantidae. It is endemic to Bolivia and is known from the vicinity of its type locality in the Chapare Province (northern Cochabamba Department) and from Abra de la Cruz in the M ...

'' (Köhler, 2000) * ''

Yunganastes bisignatus ''Yunganastes bisignatus'' is a species of frog in the family Strabomantidae. It is endemic to the La Paz Department (Bolivia), La Paz Department, Bolivia, and known from between the Inquisivi Province, Inquisivi and Nor Yungas Provinces. It has ...

'' (Werner, 1899) * ''

Yunganastes fraudator ''Yunganastes fraudator'' is a species of frog in the family Strabomantidae. It is endemic to Bolivia and found in the Cochabamba Department to the border with the Santa Cruz Department. It is sometimes known as Cochamba robber frog. Its specifi ...

'' (Lynch and McDiarmid, 1987) * ''

Yunganastes mercedesae ''Yunganastes mercedesae'' is a species of frog in the family Strabomantidae. It is found in Bolivia and southern Peru. It is sometimes known as Mercedes' robber frog. It is named after Mercedes S. Foster, who collected the holotype and was ackn ...

'' (Lynch and McDiarmid, 1987) * ''

Yunganastes pluvicanorus ''Yunganastes pluvicanorus'' is a species of frog in the family Strabomantidae. It is endemic to Bolivia and found on the eastern slopes of the Cordillera Oriental in the Cochabamba and Santa Cruz Departments. Description Adult males measure ...

'' (De la Riva and Lynch, 1997)

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3573229 Amphibians of South America Amphibian genera Taxa named by Santiago Castroviejo-Fisher Taxa named by José Manuel Padial Taxa named by Ignacio J. De la Riva Taxa named by Jörn Köhler