A new species of Nyctimystes (Anura, Hylidae) from Papua New Guinea and comments on poorly-known members of the genus

Abstract

Nyctimystes kuduki sp. nov. is described from lower-montane rainforest in Southern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea. It is distinguished from all other members of the genus by its moderately large size (males 58.2-61.0 mm SVL), thick yellow or gold, vertically oriented palpebral venation, lack of dermal heel appendages and presence of vocal slits in adult males. Males call from leaves adjacent to and overhanging fast-flowing streams. The advertisement call is a long series of rasping notes produced at a rate of 0.7-1.1/s, with 9-12 pulses/note and a dominant frequency of 1873-2104 Hz. Brief comments and new data are provided for the poorly-known species N. cheesmanae, N. montanus and N. semipalmatus. © 2007 Departamento de Ciências Biológicas - ESALQ - USP.