Pristimantis


Pristimantis is a very speciose genus of frogs distributed in the southern Caribbean islands and in Central and South America from Honduras to northern Argentina and southern Brazil. With 617 described species, the genus has more species than any other vertebrate genus. Many of these species genus are endemic to the Northwestern Andean montane forests ecoregion in north-western South America.

Etymology

From the Greek πρίστις and μάντις.

Taxonomy

Placement of this genus has varied greatly. Pristimantis was long included in the massive genus Eleutherodactylus, and considered part of the family Leptodactylidae. Currently, the genus is placed in the family Strabomantidae, subfamily Strabomantinae.

Species

As of February 2025, 617 Pristimantis species had been named, but new ones continue to be described on a regular basis :