The southern frogs form the Leptodactylidae, a name that comes from Greek meaning a bird or other animal having slender toes. They are a diverse family of frogs that most likely diverged from other hyloids during the Cretaceous. The family has undergone major taxonomic revisions in recent years, including the reclassification of the former subfamily Eleutherodactylinae into its own family the Eleutherodactylidae; the Leptodactylidae now number 206 species in 13 genera distributed throughout Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. The family includes terrestrial, burrowing, aquatic, and arboreal members, inhabiting a wide range of habitats.
The glass frogs belong to the amphibian family Centrolenidae, native to the Central American Rainforests. The general background coloration of most glass frogs is primarily lime green, the abdominal skin of some members of this family is transparent and translucent, giving the glass frog its common name. The internal viscera, including the heart, liver, and gastrointestinal tract, are visible through the skin. When active their blood makes them visible; when sleeping most of the blood is concealed in the liver, hiding them. Glass frogs are arboreal, living mainly in trees, feeding on small insects and only coming out for mating season. Their transparency conceals them very effectively when sleeping on a green leaf, as they habitually do. However, climate change and habitat frangmentation has been threatening the survival rates of the family.
Gastrotheca is a genus of frogs in the family Hemiphractidae. They are found in Central America south of Costa Rica and in South America. Most species occur in the American Cordillera from southern Costa Rica to north-western Argentina. This genus makes up the bulk of marsupial frog diversity; formerly it was placed in the "Leptodactylidae" assemblage.
Leptodactylus is a genus of leptodactylid frogs. It includes the species commonly called ditch frogs or white-lipped frogs. It is very similar to Physalaemus, a close relative, and indeed the 2005 described Leptodactylus lauramiriamae is in some aspects intermediate between them. The name means ‘slender finger’, from leptos and the Greek daktylos.
Dendrophryniscus is a genus of true toads in the family Bufonidae, sometimes known as tree toads. They are endemic to the Atlantic Forest of Brazil.
Hemiphractus is a genus of frogs, the horned treefrogs, in the family Hemiphractidae. These overall brownish frogs have a pointed snout and a casque on the head. They are nocturnal, relatively rare and native to humid lowland and highland forests in northern South America and Panama, where typically found on the ground or at relatively low levels in vegetation.
Oreobates is a genus of frogs in the family Strabomantidae. Most species were formerly in the genus Ischnocnema, but were moved to this revalidated genus following a 2006 revision. Its sister taxon is Lynchius.
Hyloxalus fuliginosus is a species of frog in the family Dendrobatidae. It may be endemic to Ecuador where it is known from the Amazonian slopes of the Andes in the northern Ecuador, with some sources reporting it from Colombia and Venezuela.
Hyloxalus pulchellus is a species of frog in the family Dendrobatidae from northern Ecuador and southern Colombia. Colombina source does not include Nariño but does include Putumayo Department.
Edalorhina perezi is a species of frog in the family Leptodactylidae. It is one of the only two species in the genus Edalorhina in the family Leptodactylidae. This species is diurnal and terrestrial. During mating season both female and male frogs gather around treefall pools. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, and possibly Bolivia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, and freshwater marshes. The species listed as least concern on the IUCN Red List and the population is stable.
Pristimantis lacrimosus, commonly known as Jiménez's robber frog or the Lloróna frog, is a species of frog in the family Strabomantidae.
Hemiphractus bubalus, or the Ecuador horned tree frog, is a species of frog in the family Hemiphractidae. It is found in the upper Amazon Basin and lower Amazonian slopes of the Andes in northern Peru, Ecuador, and southern Colombia . Its natural habitat is dense cloud forest. It is typically found perching on branches of bushes and small trees. It is assumed to be a predator of other frog species. It is sensitive to habitat modification and is threatened by habitat loss.
Hemiphractus proboscideus, or the Sumaco horned treefrog, is a species of frog in the family Hemiphractidae. It is found in the upper Amazon basin in extreme southwestern Colombia, Ecuador, and northern Peru.
Hyloxalus is a genus of poison dart frogs, family Dendrobatidae. The genus is distributed in Central and South America, from Panama south to Peru, along with Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador. They also inhabit the eastern foothills of the Andes in Bolivia to Venezuela, east to the upper Amazon Basin.
Pristimantis is a very large genus of frogs distributed in the southern Caribbean islands and in Central and South America from Honduras to northern Argentina and southern Brazil. With 596 described species, the genus had more species than any other genus of vertebrate animals. Many of these species genus are endemic to the Northwestern Andean montane forests ecoregion in north-western South America.
The Strabomantidae are a family of frogs native to South America. These frogs lack a free-living larval stage and hatch directly into miniature "froglets". This family includes Pristimantis, the most speciose genus of any vertebrate.
Centroleninae is one of two subfamilies of the family Centrolenidae. It has nine genera distributed in Central America from Honduras south and east to northern and central South America. As of mid 2015, it contains 117 species.
Strabomantis is a genus of frogs in the family Strabomantidae. At times these frogs have been included in the large genus Eleutherodactylus. They are distributed from Costa Rica southwards to northern South America.
The Leiuperinae are a subfamily of frogs in the family Leptodactylidae. Over 90 species are in five genera. The distribution of this subfamily is from southern Mexico to the Central America and much of South America.
Espadarana is a genus of glass frogs. They are found in Central America and northern South America.
