''Eleutherodactylus counouspeus'', also known as Counou robber frog and yellow cave frog, is a species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order (biology), order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough ski ...

in the family

Eleutherodactylidae The Eleutherodactylidae are a family of direct-developing frogs native to northern South America, the Caribbean, and southernmost North America. They are sometimes known under the common name rain frogs. Formerly the subfamily Eleutherodactylina ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the

Massif de la Hotte The Massif de la Hotte () is a mountain range in southwestern Haiti, on the Tiburon Peninsula, Haiti, Tiburon Peninsula west of the Petit-Goâve-Jacmel fault. About 2.5 million years ago, Massif de la Hotte was separated from the Massif de la Sel ...

, southwestern

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

. The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

''counouspeus'' refers to its type locality, Counou Bois Cave, with ''speus'' being Greek for "cave". Hedges and colleagues suggested in 2008 that it should be placed in its own monotypic

subgenus In biology, a subgenus ( 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 the ge ...

, ''Schwartzius'', reflecting its distinctiveness and honoring

Albert Schwartz Albert Schwartz may refer to: * Albert Schwartz (swimmer) (1907–1986), American attorney and Olympic swimmer * Albert Schwartz (zoologist) Albert Schwartz (September 13, 1923 – October 18, 1992) was an American zoologist who worked e ...

for "his contributions to the herpetology of the West Indies."

Description

''Eleutherodactylus counouspeus'' is a relatively large ''Eleutherodactylus'' species: males can grow to and females to 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 mos ...

. The snout is truncate. The tympanum is oval and distinct. The digital discs are well-developed. The fingers lack webbing while the toes have rudimentary webbing. The dorsum is greenish yellow to tan, with black or gray markings. These include an interocular bar that is often followed by a scapular +-shaped blotch. The limbs have rather diffuse dark-gray spotting. The throat is yellowish green, heavily mottled with brownish. The belly is pinkish with admixture of yellow-green, suffused with brown stippling. Males have an external (but not prominent)

vocal sac The vocal sac is the flexible Biological membrane, 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 voca ...

Habitat and conservation

''Eleutherodactylus counouspeus'' occurs in limestone caves and crevices in closed, humid forest at elevations of

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

, as well as in disturbed forest habitats. Eggs are deposited in caves and have direct development (i.e., there is no free-living larval stage). It is a moderately common species but threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

. The species occurs in the

Pic Macaya National Park Pic Macaya National Park () is one of two largest national parks of the Republic of Haiti. It is located in the country's southern peninsula, within the Massif de la Hotte. Featuring the country's last stand of virgin cloud forest, it encompass ...

, but there is no active management for conservation, and habitat loss continues in the park. It is also present in the better managed Grand Bois National Park.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eleutherodactylus Counouspeus counouspeus Frogs of Haiti Endemic fauna of Haiti Amphibians described in 1964 Taxa named by Albert Schwartz (zoologist) Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Cave amphibians