Description

MORPHOLOGICAL:

DIAGNOSIS:

Ceuthomantis duellmani is the only Ceuthomantis species in its geological range (Barrio-Amorós 2010).

COLORATION:

In life, the dorsal color is dark green to brown, with red tubercles on head and body. The canthal and supratympanic stripes are dark brown to black. The clearly observable vertebral raphe is yellow, green to brown. The lips are lime green with some brown entrances, not reaching the eye. The surface of the limbs is dark grey with sky blue spots. The ventral surface is dirty white to gray. The anterior thigh and groin grey bluish (Barrio-Amorós 2010).

VARIATION:

The supratympanic folds and mid-dorsal raphe of this species could either be very or slightly distinct. In addition to this, conical warts can vary along with finger/toe length. (Barrio-Amoros 2010).

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Venezuela

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

Ceuthomantis duellmani is endemic to southeastern Venezuela and more specifically found in the state of Bolívar. They inhabit a national park called Sarisariñama tepui where most of the terrain is covered in vegetation on the summit of a flat-topped mountain. The habitat includes extremely dense jungles and dwarf forests that are completely covered with moss and other vegetation (Barrio-Amoros 2010).

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors

Due to the secretive lifestyle of these frogs, they are extremely difficult to locate. The male frogs of this species are known to call from inside their secluded dens, hiding areas, and inside the holes of some trees (Barrio-Amoros 2010).

This species mainly calls after rainfall during the day and most commonly during days that are the most humid. Researchers have heard a greater number of calls from this species after heavy rainfall compared to days after light rainfall when there are sparse calls (Barrio-Amoros 2010).

One call was recorded in March at an air temperature of 22.5 °C. The call series consists of 52 pulsed notes that last for a total of 5 seconds with about 11 notes per second. The note durations lasts between 0.032 – 0.038 seconds and the internote interval is 0.0057 - 0.0066 seconds. The fundamental frequency ranges from 1700 – 1900 Hz and the dominant frequency ranges between 3100 – 3800 Hz (Barrio-Amoros 2010).

Trends and Threats
This species is listed as “Near Threatened” by the IUCN Red List as of 2019. However, its population trend is unknown and it is only known from one location. With this species being located along rivers in the undisturbed and remoted Guiana Highlands of Venezuela, it is not threatened from habitat loss but rather by storms, droughts, flooding, or habitat shifting/altercations (IUCN 2019).

Possible reasons for amphibian decline

Prolonged drought
Floods
Climate change, increased UVB or increased sensitivity to it, etc.

Comments
Ceuthomantis duellmani was named after William E. Duellman in honor of his 50th anniversary at the University of Kansas. He is also one of the describers of the family Ceuthomantidae (Barrio-Amoros 2010).

References

Barrio-Amorós, C. (2010). ''A new Ceuthomantis (Anura: Terrarana: Ceuthomantidae) from Sarisariñama Tepui, southern Venezuela.'' Herpetologica, 66, 172-181.

IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group. 2020. Ceuthomantis duellmani. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T196452A109546194. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T196452A109546194.en. Downloaded on 10 August 2021.

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2021 Ceuthomantis duellmani <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/7496> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Nov 22, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 22 Nov 2024.

AmphibiaWeb's policy on data use.