Taxonomy and relationships of myobatrachine frogs (Leptodactylidae) : A numerical approach

Abstract

The current generic classification of Australian myobatrachine leptodactylids is essentially unchanged from that of Parker (1940). Since then, however, the concept of the genus has altered, and many new species have been described in this subfamily. Some of these species were erected on the basis of differentiation in only one character (male mating-call structure). Hence a re-examination of generic boundaries and species relationships is warranted. Specimens of the five myobatrachine genera Crinia Tschudi, Metacrinia Parker, Pseudophryne Fitzinger, Taudactylus Straughan & Lee, and Uperoleia Gray were collected and studied. Numerical strategies employing a large array of characters (morphological, anatomical, ecological, and ethological) were used to develop a series of phenetic classifications and ordinations of the specimens. Interpretation of the results has led to a taxonomic revision which splits the genus Crinia into three separate genera, returns Metacrinia nichollsi to its former classification in Pseudophryne, and confirms the generic status of Taudactylus and Uperoleia. In addition, a hypothetical phylogeny of these genera is proposed.