Asterophrys

Asterophrys is an amphibian genus of the family -mouthed.

Description

The tongue is large and fully adhered to the oral cavity floor. Palate teeth are missing. The eardrum is invisible. Front and hind feet have no webbing. Praecoracoide missing.

Squamosal merged as nasal and rough ( rugos ), frontoparietal with a high, thin bone Kiel in the longitudinal ( sagittal), thick and rough: from related genera of Asterophryinae the genus is in some features of the skull and the muscles distinguishable. With some related genera ( tribe Asterophryini ) is common among others the keeled iliac ..

Both species are stocky, ground- living anurans with warty skin and in proportion to body very wide head.

Occurrence

The genus occurs only in New Guinea before .. Asterophrys leucopus has been proven only from the type locality: Rainforest at Stolle Mountain, Sandaun Province, Papua New Guinea. Asterophrys turpicola is more widespread and also occurs in disturbed habitats, including human settlements,. A further, as yet undescribed species probably lives on the Vogelkop Peninsula, West New Guinea.

System

The genus was first described in 1838 by Asterophrys Johann Jakob von Tschudi. It includes two types:

• Asterophrys leucopus Richards, Johnston, and Burton, 1994
• Asterophrys turpicola ( Schlegel, 1837)

Together with the genera Xenorhina, Pherohaspis, Metamagnusia, Pseudocallulops and Oninia it forms a group of closely related species, the tribe Asterophryinini

By molecular data (using homologous DNA sequences ) is used next, the genus Callulops. According to the data, this may even be paraphyletic ( some species more closely related to each other than Asterophrys ) is. , So that the past, set up on the basis of morphological systematics needs to be reviewed well.