The Amphibians and Reptiles of Michoacán, México

by William Edward Duellman

Phyllomedusa dacnicolor Cope

Phyllomedusa dacnicolor Cope, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 16:181, September 30, 1864.—Colima, Colima, México. Funkhouser, Occ. Pap. Nat. Hist. Mus. Stanford Univ., 5:37, April 1, 1957.

Agalychnis alcorni Taylor, Copeia, no. 2:31, June 2, 1952.—Río Tepalcatepec, 17 miles south of Apatzingán, Michoacán, México.

Agalychnis dacnicolor, Duellman, Herpetologica, 13:29, March 30, 1957.

Phyllomedusa alcorni, Funkhouser, Occ. Pap. Nat. Hist. Mus. Stanford Univ., 5:30, April 1, 1957.

Aguililla (13); Apatzingán (7); Charapendo; Coahuayana (3); Coalcomán (54); El Sabino; Huetamo Road (2); La Orilla; La Placita; Nueva Italia (4); 32 km. E of Neuva Italia (2); Río Cancita, 14 km. E of Apatzingán; Río Tepalcatepec, 27 km. S of Apatzingán; Salitre de Estopilas (2); Tzitzio (4).

This large tree frog has been found only in the lowlands below elevation of about 1000 meters, usually in arid tropical scrub forest. Calling males were heard on rainy nights throughout the rainy season; in nearly every instance both males and females were found in low trees and bushes. On summer nights when there had been no rain, adults were found sitting on bushes in the scrub forest.

At Coalcomán on July 1, 1955, a chorus was heard at midday. About forty Phyllomedusa dacnicolor were found in one guayava bush at the edge of a recently dried pond. Individual males were calling; clasping males were silent. The call is a barking groan. Fifteen individual egg masses were hanging from branches and leaves in tear-drop fashion. Each egg mass contained 100 to 350 pale green eggs, located only in the exterior part of the clear gelatinous mass. Two composite egg masses appeared to have been made up by egg deposition on the part of three to five females (Pl. 2, Fig. 2).

As shown by Duellman (1957a), the characters used by Taylor (1952) to diagnose Phyllomedusa alcorni are sexually dimorphic. Funkhouser (1957) apparently was unaware of this sexual dimorphism, for she recognized P. alcorni and P. dacnicolor as distinct species.

Phrynohyas inflata (Taylor)