ISSN: 0037-8518 Versión impresa ISSN: 2443-4698 Versión electrónica Memoria de la Fundación La Salle de Ciencias Naturales, 2021, 79(187):105-113 Nota First record of the treefrog Myersiohyla neblinaria (Anura: Hylidae) for Cerro Aracamuni, in the south of the Venezuelan Amazon Fernando J. M. Rojas-Runjaic, J. Celsa Señaris and Michelle C. Castellanos-Montero Abstract. Until now, the treefrog Myersiohyla neblinaria was only known from four highland localities on the northern slope of Cerro de la Neblina, in the southern part of Amazonas state, Venezuela. In this note we document the irst record of this species for the summit of Cerro Aracamuni, a table-top mountain located ca. 40 km north from Cerro de la Neblina. This is the fourth anuran species known for the poorly explored Aracamuni. We brie ly discuss some impli- cations of this new inding. Keywords: Frog) Amphibia) Cophomantini) Pantepui) Guayana ,egion Primer registro de la rana arborícola Myersiohyla neblinaria (Anura: Hylidae) para el Cerro Aracamuni, en el sur de la Amazonia venezolana Resumen. -asta ahora, la rana arbor.́cola Myersiohyla neblinaria era conocida solo de cuatro localidades en la ladera norte del Cerro de la Neblina, en la parte sur del estado Amazonas, Vene- zuela. 0n esta nota documentamos el primer registro de la especie para la cima del Cerro Araca- muni, un tepui localizado a unos 40 km al norte del Cerro de la Neblina. 0sta es la cuarta especie de anuro conocida para el poco explorado Aracamuni. 1iscutimos bre2emente algunas de las implicaciones de este nue2o hallazgo. Palabras clave: ,ana) Amphibia) Cophomantini) Pantepui) ,egio/n Guayanesa Myersiohyla was erected by Fai2o2ich et al. 320056 to name a monophyletic group of Cophomantini reco2ered in their molecular phylogeny as sister taxon to all the other genera in that tribe. As inferred by Fai2o2ich et al. 320056, Myersiohyla was composed by an undescribed species from Cerro de la Neblina, formerly assigned to the Hyla aromatica species Group 3Ayarzagu7ena and Sen9aris 19946 3this was misidentified as Hyla inparquesi by Fai2o2ich et al. 2005, but subsequently described and named by Fai2o2ich et al. 20136 and Hyla kanaima Goin & Woodley, 1969 from Guyana, which had pre2iously been assigned to the H. geographica species Group 31uellman and -oogmoed 19926. Based on morphological similarities, Fai2o2ich et al. 320056 also transferred to Myersiohyla the other two species pre2iously included in the H. aromatica species Group 3i.e., H. aromatica Ayarzagu7ena & Sen9aris, 1994 from Cerro -uachamacari, and H. inparquesi Ayarzagu7ena & Sen9aris, 1994 from Cerro Aarahuaca6 and H. loveridgei ,i2ero, 1961 from Cerro 1uida. Myersiohyla was supported by 48 molecular synapomorphies, but no morphological synapomorphies were identified 3Fai2o2ich et al. 20056. 106 A new record of Myersiohyla neblinaria In a subsequent study, Faivovich et al. (2013) described two additional species: Myersiohyla chamaeleo and M. neblinaria, both from the Venezuelan side of Cerro de la Neblina. More recently, Pinheiro et al. (2019) based on their new and more complete phylogenetic hypothesis, transferred Hypsiboas liliae Kok, 2006 to Myersiohyla. In addition, they created a new genus (Nesorohyla) to accommodate Hyla kanaima and thus maintain the monophyly of Myersiohyla. As currently composed, Myersiohyla harbors six described species, /ive o them rom the uplands and highlands o the western 0uayana 1egion in Venezuela (2en3aris and 1o4as51un4aic 2020), and the si.th one, M. liliae, rom the lowlands (4007880 m a.s.l.) o the 0uayana Esequiba (Kok 200,). :owever, the number o species in Myersiohyla is e.pected to change in the uture, as: i) the western 0uayana remains poorly e.plored; ii) it is suspected that M. aromatica may be a 4unior synonym o M. loveridgei (Faivovich et al. 2013, Barrio5Amoro=s et al. 2019); and, iii) a ew additional specimens assignable to Myersiohyla are known rom the summits o Cerro Jaua (Ore4as5Miranda and Quesada 19A,), and Cerro Duida (Faivovich et al. 2013) and uture studies could corroborate that they correspond to underscribed species. Cntil now, no morphological synapomorphies are known or this genus, but it can be diagnosed by the ollowing combination o characters: medium5size tree5 rogs (3A78A mm in 2VD); with strong odor; tympanum conspicuous, with tym5 panic annulus well5de/ined and tympanic membrane di erentiated; dentigerous process 25shaped, with high number o vomerine teeth (2873E); small nasal bones; /ingers basally webbed; nuptial pads (single or double) and mental gland present in adult males; single subgular vocal sac; e.otrophic stream dwelling tad5 poles, with labial tooth row ormula (DT1F) ranging between 4714/A721 (Duellman and :oogmoed 1992, AyarzaguHena and 2en3aris 1994, Faivovich et al. 2013). Myersiohyla neblinaria is known rom our localities (camps I, II, VII, and II) on Cerro de la Neblina in the southern border o Amazonas state in Venezuela (Figure 1), between 1,48072,100 m a.s.l. (Faivovich et al. 2013). This species is de/ined by its medium body size (2VD: 4A.A782.3 mm in males and 84.07,1., mm in emales); by having transverse dark bars on thighs, dorsum pale brown with dark brown blotches and usually a dark vertebral line, and lacking sagittal black lines on hand and toe discs; by having a row o tubercles in the orearm; by the presence o a single nuptial pad and inconspicuous mental gland in males; unpig5 mented ovarian eggs in emales; and DT1F o 1,(1,)/21(1) in tadpoles (Faivovich et al. 2013). :ere we report a new locality record or Myersiohyla neblinaria or Venezuela, based on an adult male (M:ND2 14814; ield number C051E0; Figures 273) collected at the summit o Cerro Aracamuni (1J2EK3,LN 7 ,8J80K0ALM; ca. 1,420 m a.s.l.; Figure 1), by Carmen 0arcŃa on November 03, 1992. Our specimen matches with all the main morphological character states that de/ine M. neblinaria, e.cept by being slightly smaller (2VD: 48.A mm) than the minimum size reported or adult males o this species (4A.A mm; see Faivovich et al. 2013). 107 Mem. Fund. La Salle Cienc. Nat., 2021, 79(187) Figure 1. Map of the southern part of Amazonas state in Venezuela depicting the geographic distribution of Myersiohyla neblinaria on La Neblina massif. The gray line represents Venezuela-Brazil border. White dots: previous records from Cerro de la Neblina; clockwise they represent camp I, XI, VII, and II (Faivovich et al. 2013). Yellow dot: new record for the summit of Cerro Aracamuni. Cerro Aracamuni is the larger table5top granitic mountain in the northern part o the Neblina massi . It reaches a ma.imum elevation o 1,,00 m a.s.l., and shares its slopes with its neighbor Cerro Avispa; the combined slope sur ace o both tepuis is about ,8E km2, while their combined summit sur aces (O 1,800 m a.s.l.) reaches 23E km2 (2teyermark and :olst 19E9, :uber 1998). From the 1,800 m a.s.l., the summit o Aracamuni is mainly covered by dense meadows on peaty soils and low shrubby vegetation, with small orest patches on depressions along which small streams run. The meadows are dominated by Stegolepis spp. (1apateaceae), Eriocaulaceae, Bromeliaceae, Iyridaceae, Diliaceae, and 2arracenia5 ceae (2teyermark and :olst 19E9), while orest patches are mainly composed by Neblinanthera cumbrensis (Melastomataceae), Aegiphila roraimensis (Damiaceae), Clusia spp. (Clusiaceae), Diacidia glaucifolia (Malpighiaceae), Phyllanthus vaccinii- folius (Phyllanthaceae), Psychotria duricoria, P. jauaensis (1ubiaceae), and Tyleria silvana (Ochnaceae) (:uber and 1ull 2019). Above 1,,00 m a.s.l., Aracamuni is mainly covered by Bonnetia aguireorum, B. neblinae (Bonnetiaceae), and Rutane- blina pusilla (1utaceae); these last three species are also present at similar eleva5 tions on the summits o the neighboring Cerro Avispa and Cerro de la Neblina (:uber and 1ull 2019). Although Cerro Aracamuni is part o the Neblina massi , its summit is separated rom Cerro de la Neblina by about 40 km o lowlands and uplands densely covered by tropical humid orest. 108 A new record of Myersiohyla neblinaria Figure 2. Adult male of Myersiohyla neblinaria (MHNLS 14514) from the summit of Cerro Aracamuni, Amazonas state, Venezuela: dorsal (a), ventral (b), and lateral (c) views of body. Photos: F. J. M. Rojas-Runjaic. 109 Mem. Fund. La Salle Cienc. Nat., 2021, 79(187) Figure 3. Adult male of Myersiohyla neblinaria (MHNLS 14514) from the summit of Cerro Aracamuni, Amazonas state, Venezuela: a. Ventral view of the right hand; b. Dorsal view of the left thumb showing the single glandular nuptial pad (highlighted with a bro- ken white line); c. Ventral view of the left foot. Photos: F. J. M. Rojas-Runjaic (a, c) and M. Castellanos-Montero (b). 110 A new record of Myersiohyla neblinaria Cerro Aracamuni has been e.plored several times by botanical e.peditions and its highly endemic /lora is relatively well5sampled (2teyermark and :olst 19E9). Nevertheless, its herpeto auna remains virtually unknown as none o these e.peditions contemplated herpetological collections. Only a ew amphibians were circumstantially collected; even so, its study resulted in the discovery o the glass rog PCochranellaL riveroi (AyarzaguHena, 1992) and the emerald5barred rog Ceuthomantis aracamuni (Barrio5Amoro=s & Molina, 200,), two enigmatic species still only known rom that tepui and whose evolutionary relationships remain unknown (0uayasamin et al. 2009, Padial et al. 2014). A third species rom Cerro Aracamuni, determined only as a member o the genus Stefania (2en3aris et al. 199A) could represent a new ta.on or alternatively correspond to Stefania neblinae Carvalho, MacCulloch, Bonora & Vogt, 2010, its geographically closest congener, which is distributed on the southern oothill o Neblina massi in Brazil (Carvalho et al. 2010). Myersiohyla neblinaria is the ourth anuran species known rom the summit o Cerro Aracamuni and this new record e.tends its distribution ca.