A secret from a hidden world: A new glassfrog of the genus Nymphargus (Anura: Centrolenidae) from Cordillera del Cóndor, Ecuador

Mylena V. Masache-Sarango; Diego F. Cisneros-Heredia; Santiago R. Ron

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0345097

A secret from a hidden world: A new glassfrog of the genus Nymphargus (Anura: Centrolenidae) from Cordillera del Cóndor, Ecuador

Mylena V. Masache-Sarango
, Diego F. Cisneros-Heredia
, Santiago R. Ron^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador
Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad INABIO

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

The genus Nymphargus is the most speciose of the family Centrolenidae with 44 species. In this study, we describe a new species of Nymphargus and present an updated phylogeny. The new species is sister to an undescribed species, also from SW Ecuador, and both belong to a clade that includes N. buenaventura, N. cariticommatus, N. griffithsi, N. lasgralarias, N. sucre, and N. wileyi. The new species likely originated during the Pliocene (~4.5 Mya) and is characterized by a uniformly green dorsum lacking spots, shagreened dorsal skin, and white peritonea covering the esophagus and stomach. Our phylogeny provides, for the first time, the phylogenetic position of N. buenaventura. The new species was discovered at Reserva Biológica El Quimi, during expeditions by the QCAZ Museum in 2017 and 2018. Most amphibian species found at that location were undescribed, indicating that some regions of Cordillera del Cóndor host amphibian communities that have remained as “hidden worlds” for biological exploration.

Original language	English
Article number	e0345097
Journal	PLOS ONE
Volume	21
Issue number	4 April
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345097
State	Published - Apr 2026

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title = "A secret from a hidden world: A new glassfrog of the genus Nymphargus (Anura: Centrolenidae) from Cordillera del C{\'o}ndor, Ecuador",

abstract = "The genus Nymphargus is the most speciose of the family Centrolenidae with 44 species. In this study, we describe a new species of Nymphargus and present an updated phylogeny. The new species is sister to an undescribed species, also from SW Ecuador, and both belong to a clade that includes N. buenaventura, N. cariticommatus, N. griffithsi, N. lasgralarias, N. sucre, and N. wileyi. The new species likely originated during the Pliocene (\textasciitilde{}4.5 Mya) and is characterized by a uniformly green dorsum lacking spots, shagreened dorsal skin, and white peritonea covering the esophagus and stomach. Our phylogeny provides, for the first time, the phylogenetic position of N. buenaventura. The new species was discovered at Reserva Biol{\'o}gica El Quimi, during expeditions by the QCAZ Museum in 2017 and 2018. Most amphibian species found at that location were undescribed, indicating that some regions of Cordillera del C{\'o}ndor host amphibian communities that have remained as “hidden worlds” for biological exploration.",

author = "Masache-Sarango, \{Mylena V.\} and Cisneros-Heredia, \{Diego F.\} and Ron, \{Santiago R.\}",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2026 Masache-Sarango et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.",

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AU - Ron, Santiago R.

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A secret from a hidden world: A new glassfrog of the genus Nymphargus (Anura: Centrolenidae) from Cordillera del Cóndor, Ecuador

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