Description
Eleutherodactylus pezopetrus is a small frog (but relatively large for an eleutherodactylid), with adult females reaching up to 49 mm in SVL and males up to 42 mm. The skin texture is warty, with the dorsum having prominent orange sacral warts. Digital discs are large. There is no webbing between the toes. The vomerine teeth, behind the choanae, are present in a long and arched series (Schwartz 1960; Schwartz and Henderson 1985; Schwartz and Henderson 1991).

This species is tan, lightly marbled with dark gray and possessing a pair of tan sacral spots. Sometimes a pair of dorsolateral orange lines is present, expanded in the region of the sacral blotches. The interocular region is darkly mottled. A light tan loreal spot is present, preceded by a stippled arc and bounded above by a dark canthal line. Below the eye, there is another pale spot, preceded and followed by dark areas. The concealed surfaces of the hind limbs are faintly purple or flesh-colored. The venter is opalescent white, lightly stippled with brown medially, and heavily stippled laterally. The chin and the throat are heavily stippled with dark brown (Schwartz 1960; Schwartz and Henderson 1985; Schwartz and Henderson 1991).

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Cuba

View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.

This species is endemic to Cuba and it is known only from La Cantera in Sierra de Nipe, in eastern Cuba. It is found at 100-270 m in elevation. This is a terrestrial frog, found on the ground and climbing on rocks and cliffs in deciduous woods (Schwartz and Henderson 1991).

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors
Males vocalize from the ground and from rocks. Calls are composed of several notes (Diaz and Fong, in preparation). Other aspects of the natural history of this frog are unknown.

Trends and Threats
Habitat modification is considered the principal threat to this species (Vales et al. 1998), mainly deforestation due to mining and agriculture (Hedges and Diaz 2004).

Possible reasons for amphibian decline

General habitat alteration and loss
Habitat modification from deforestation, or logging related activities
Intensified agriculture or grazing
Mining

Comments
Eleutherodactylus pezopetrus is a member of the subgenus Euhyas (Heinicke et al. 2007).

Etymology- Named after the petricolous (rocky) habitat of this species (Schwartz 1960).

References

Hedges, S. B. and Díaz, L. M. (2004). Eleutherodactylus pezopetrus. In: IUCN 2007. 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. http://www.iucnredlist.org/. Downloaded 11 November 2007.

Heinicke, M. P., Duellman, W. E., Hedges, S. B. (2007). ''Major Caribbean and Central American frog faunas originated by ancient oceanic dispersal.'' Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 104(24), 10092-10097.

Schwartz, A. (1960). ''Nine new Cuban frogs of the genus Eleutherodactylus.'' Science Publishers Reading Public Museum Art Gallery, 11, 1-50.

Schwartz, A., and Henderson, R. W. (1985). A Guide to the Identification of the Amphibians and Reptiles of the West Indies Exclusive of Hispaniola. Milwaukee Public Museum, Inland Press, Milwaukee.

Schwartz, A., and Henderson, R. W. (1991). Amphibians and Reptiles of the West Indies. Descriptions, Distributions, and Natural History. University of Florida Press, Gainesville, Florida, USA.

Vales, M., Álvarez, A., Montes, L., and Ávila, A. (1998). Estudio Nacional sobre la Diversidad Biológica en la República de Cuba. CESYTA, Madrid.

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2007 Eleutherodactylus pezopetrus: Eastern Cuba Rockfrog <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/3127> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Nov 26, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 26 Nov 2024.

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