Description
Adult males measure 23.4-28.7 mm SVL. Adult females measure 24.3-34.3 mm SVL. Wide head with granular skin. Snout is rounded in profile and broadly angular from above, with a steep loreal region and a rounded canthus rostralis. Laterally directed nostrils are close to the tip of the snout. Large eyes. Small, indistinct tympanum, with a slightly raised annulus. No supratympanic fold is present. Unwebbed fingers and toes; digits have discs with terminal grooves. Finger I is well-developed. Finger discs are about 3x the width of the penultimate phalanges, except for that of Finger I, which is about 1.5x the width of the penultimate phalanx. Both finger discs and toe discs are relatively the same size, in contrast to most species of the genus Cophixalus (C. pulchellus and C. sisyphus also have similar-sized discs but are much smaller species). Fingers have low, distinct subarticular tubercles and low, oval-shaped metacarpal tubercles. Toes have well-developed subarticular tubercles. The inner metatarsal tubercle is elongated and narrow, while the outer metatarsal tubercle is absent. Skin is granular on the head, with the dorsum becoming smoother towards the posterior of the body. Sides appear malleated. Venter is smooth (Kraus and Allison 2009).

Yellow-brown, yellow-green, or olive-green body, which may have dark striping and mottling, or a narrow tan vertebral stripe bordered by wide black paravertebral stripes and dorsolateral and lateral rows of black spots. All individuals have a triangular copper-colored patch on top of the head, from the snout to between the eyes. An interocular bar is present. A copper patch may be present on the tympanum. Venter is gray flecked with dark gray. Iris is yellow-brown or may be olive-green with a copper ring around the pupil (Kraus and Allison 2009).

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Papua New Guinea

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

Endemic to Papua New Guinea. Found between sea level to 750 m ASL on Rossel Island, Milne Bay Province. Probably occurs up to the summit at 880 m, which is dwarf cloud forest. Found along streams, in primary and advanced secondary rainforest, and in sago swamps. Generally found on the ground or on small rocks and in low vegetation adjacent to streams (Kraus and Allison 2009).

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Generally calls at night, but sometimes will call during the day. The call consists of a long series of peeps, and has at least 40 notes (delivered at a rate of about 5 notes/second), with a dominant frequency of around 3100 Hz (Kraus and Allison 2009).

Comments
The specific epithet is derived from the Greek words "cupreus" and "karenon" and refers to the copper-colored head patch of this species.

References

Kraus, F., and Allison, A. (2009). ''New species of Cophixalus (Anura: Microhylidae) from Papua New Guinea.'' Zootaxa, 2128, 1-38.

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2009 Cophixalus cupricarenus <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/7338> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Nov 21, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 21 Nov 2024.

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