''Stereocyclops'' (common name: Brazilian dumpy frogs) is a small genus of

microhylid The Microhylidae, commonly known as narrow-mouthed frogs, are a geographically widespread family of frogs. The 683 species are in 57 genera and 11 subfamilies. Evolution A molecular phylogenetic study by van der Meijden, et al. (2007) has estima ...

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 ...

s. 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 Atlantic forest of eastern

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. Molecular phylogeny suggests that it is

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 ...

to the

clade In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach t ...

containing '' Dasypops'' and '' Myersiella''.

Description

''Stereocyclops'' can be defined by features of its

osteology Osteology () is the scientific study of bones, practiced by osteologists . A subdiscipline of anatomy, anthropology, archaeology and paleontology, osteology is the detailed study of the structure of bones, skeletal elements, teeth, microbone mo ...

. In the skull,

palatine bone In anatomy, the palatine bones (; derived from the Latin ''palatum'') are two irregular bones of the facial skeleton in many animal species, located above the uvula in the throat. Together with the maxilla, they comprise the hard palate. Stru ...

is present, as is the posterior part of prevomer. The

clavicle The clavicle, collarbone, or keybone is a slender, S-shaped long bone approximately long that serves as a strut between the scapula, shoulder blade and the sternum (breastbone). There are two clavicles, one on each side of the body. The clavic ...

is fully developed and long. Furthermore, the dorsal coloration is light and sharply separated from the dark ventrum by a light line. The head is flattened and the mouth is relatively large. Notice, however, that at the time of this description, the genus was

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

and ''Hyophryne'' was considered a separate genus; a thorough morphological study of the genus as presently understood is lacking.

Beheavior

One species, ''Stereocyclops parkeri'', is known to show defensive behavior that may enhance its cryptic appearance, giving an impression of a casually dislodged leaf: when an individual is disturbed, it makes a short leap, landing with its legs stretched backwards. It will then remain still, sometimes as long as 30 minutes, although it may also move a little forward with a quick movement of the feet, resembling a flicked leaf.

Species

There are four species in the genus:

References

Microhylidae Amphibian genera Amphibians of the Atlantic Forest Endemic frogs of Brazil Taxa named by Edward Drinker Cope {{Microhylidae-stub