New Species of Platymantis (Amphibia; Anura; Ranidae) from New Britain and Redescription of the Poorly Known Platymantis Nexipus
We describe a new species of high-elevation rainforest tree frog (genus Platymantis) from the Nakanai Mountains, New Britain Island, Bismarck Archipelago, Southwestern Pacific. The new species is characterized by moderate body size (34.2–35.8 mm for four males), widely expanded terminal digital disks of the fingers and toes, smooth skin of the dorsum, a distinctive color pattern, and a complex, amplitude-modulated advertisement call produced in groups of 3–6 notes. We compare the new species to all known species of Platymantis from New Britain and to additional phenotypically similar species from the Solomon Islands and Fiji. It is most similar to P. nexipus, a species known previously from only a single specimen. We rediagnose and redescribe P. nexipus on the basis of the holotype and ten recently collected specimens, provide the first descriptions of the advertisement calls of both species, and comment on an additional suspected undescribed species from the Nakanai Mountains of New Britain Island.Abstract
The Bismarck Archipelago and New Britain (inset: shaded black) in relation to New Guinea Island, New Ireland (NIr), the Admiralty Islands (Adr), and the Solomon Islands (Sols).
The Platymantis nakanaiorum type locality (A) is located in the Nakanai Mountains, and the Platymantis nexipus type locality (B) is St. Paul's, Baining Mountains. Recent P. nexipus collections have originated in the Nakanai Mountains (A) and the Wanui River drainage near Wide Bay (C). The capital city (Kokomo) is indicated with a star. Discrete shading indicates approximate elevational increments of 500 m.
Photographs in life of Platymantis nakanaiorum (A: UPNG 100011; B: UPNG 100010) paratypes and Platymantis nexipus (C: UWZM 23893; D: UPNG 10008).
Oblique view of the heads of Platymantis nexipus holotype (A: female, BPBM 1009), recently collected specimens from the Wanui River Valley (B: female, SAMA 56784; C: male, SAMA 56783), and the holotype of Platymantis nakanaiorum (D: male, UWZM 23897). Scale bars = 5 mm.
Hands and feet of Platymantis nexipus holotype (A, B: female, BPBM 1009), a male P. nexipus from the Wanui River Valley (C, D: SAMA 56783), a male P. nexipus from the Nakanai Mountains (E, F: UWZM 23893), and the male holotype of P. nakanaiorum (G, H: UWZM 23897).
Note degree of webbing between Toes IV and V. Scale bars = 3 mm.
A four-note advertisement call of Platymantis nakanaiorum (UWZM 23898, recorded at 17.3 C): power spectrum (A, B: Fast Fourier Transformation; relative amplitude vs. frequency in kHz), expanded waveform (C: relative amplitude vs. time in ms), sonogram (D: audiospectrogram: frequency in kHz vs. time in s), and an oscillogram (E: relative amplitude vs. time in s) of the final four notes from a single call.
The first FFT (A) was calculated across the lower frequency component of the first call (D: 120 ms), and the second (B) was calculated across the higher frequency elongate tonal note (D: 200 ms).
A four-note advertisement call of Platymantis nexipus (UWZM 23895, recorded at 18.5 C): power spectrum (A: Fast Fourier Transformation; relative amplitude vs. frequency in kHz; calculated at the first call in C), expanded waveform (B: relative amplitude vs. time in ms), sonogram (C: audiospectrogram: frequency in kHz vs. time in s), and an oscillogram (D: relative amplitude vs. time in s) of the final four notes from a single call.
An eight-note advertisement call of a suspected new species of Platymantis (UWZM 23894, recorded at 18.5 C) from the Nakanai Mountains: power spectrum (A: Fast Fourier Transformation; relative amplitude vs. frequency in kHz; calculated at the third tonal note in C), expanded waveform (B: relative amplitude vs. time in ms), sonogram (C: audiospectrogram: frequency in kHz vs. time in s), and an oscillogram (D: relative amplitude vs. time in s) for an eight-note call.
Contributor Notes
(RMB) NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM AND BIODIVERSITY RESEARCH CENTER, AND DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS, DYCHE HALL, 1345 JAYHAWK BOULEVARD, LAWRENCE, KANSAS 66045-7561;