Oreobates
Oreobates is a genus of frogs in the family Strabomantidae. Most species were formerly in the genus Ischnocnema, but were moved to this revalidated genus following a 2006 revision. Its sister taxon is Lynchius.
These frogs are found in the lower slopes of the Andes into the upper Amazon Basin from Colombia south to northern Argentina and east into western Brazil.
A 2021 phylogenomic study found that Oreobates comprises two main clades: a northern group and a southern clade, largely segregated by the elevational gradient. The study also found that highland species are less genetically diverse than their lowland relatives and carry more nonsynonymous mutations — a pattern consistent with historically smaller, more isolated populations and reduced efficacy of natural selection in mountain habitats.
Description
Frogs in the genus Oreobates are small to medium-sized with males measuring and females in snout–vent length. They are generally brownish in colour. Body is robust with a short snout. The toes lack discs and fingers have reduced or absent discs; there is no webbing.Species of the genus Oreobates lay terrestrial eggs that undergo direct development.