SPHENOPHRYNE - American Museum of Natural History

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100 BULLETIN AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY NO. 253 Fig. 56. Lower surfaces of feet and hands of Austrochaperina. A. A. rivularis, AMNH A77576. B. A. macrorhyncha, BPBM 13860. C. A. basipalmata, AMNH A78167. D. A. palmipes, AMNH A81210. E. A. parkeri, MCZ A89220. F. A. blumi, MZB 3562. Scale bars marked in 1-mm intervals. The most striking ontogenetic change in O. stenodactyla is the relative narrowing of the head. Head-first burrowing through tightly packed grass may put a premium on maintaining a narrow prow. Austrochaperina derongo has proportions that I associate with leaf-litter species, in the midrange of the other species and paralleling the growth changes of most others. Sphenophryne cornuta is notable for its ontogenetic increase in relative hand size, foot length, and disc size. These tendencies must be related to its scansorial habits. The increase in foot length coupled with a decrease in tibia length is especially notable, for in most species these two are directly correlated both in trend direction and amount. Liophryne schlaginhaufeni has the longest legs and feet, and both measurements increase relatively with growth, in marked contrast to the other species (but see cornuta, above). This elongation of limb segments provides an efficient jumping mechanism in a surface-active species, and the maintenance of relative eye size rather than relative decrease may be related to surface activity, too. The increase in the size of the small finger discs is not explicable as a direct adaptation, but may merely accompany the significant increase in hand size. Increase in hand size is presumably a scansorial adaptation in A. palmipes, although in this instance the climbing is done on streamassociated rocks rather than in bushes. The digital discs are large and either increase slightly (fingers) or maintain their relative size (toes). OSTEOLOGY A thorough description of the osteology is not possible owing to lack of appropriate material of about 40% of the species studied. I have examined cleared-and-stained (bone, or
2000 ZWEIFEL: PARTITION OF SPHENOPHRYNE 101 Fig. 57. Lower surfaces of feet and hands of Austrochaperina. A. A. yelaensis, AMNH A135406. B. A. novaebritanniae, AMS R29351. C. A. gracilipes, AMS R62053. D. A. mehelyi, UPNG 7241. E. A. brevipes, AMNH A120523. Scale bars marked in 1-mm intervals. bone and cartilage) preparations of 20 species, including three Australian endemics, and three additional dried skeletons of one of the 20, a total of 38 specimens. 12 I do not attempt to describe and compare all features of the skeletal anatomy, but concentrate on those that seem to offer some utility in assessing relationships. SKULL As is the case in other genyophrynine genera, the skulls of the species considered here are generally sturdy, well-ossified structures, even in species of rather small adult size 12 Austrochaperina basipalmata (2), A. blumi, A. brevipes, A. derongo (6), A. fryi, A. gracilipes, A. kosarek, A. novaebritanniae, A. palmipes (3 3 dried), A. pluvialis, A. rivularis, A. robusta, Liophryne allisoni, L. dentata, L. rhododactyla, L. schlaginhaufeni, Oxydactyla alpestris, O. coggeri, O. stenodactyla (6), Sphenophryne cornuta (3). (figs. 66–68). 13 The skull is typically broader than long, with the width/length being 1.1 (as high as 1.5) in all specimens except single individuals of two small species, Austrochaperina gracilipes (0.982) and A. novaebritanniae (0.915). The nasals are large and scarcely separated from each other and from the frontoparietals. The quadratojugal is consistently present. 13 In addition to those presented here, illustrations of the skulls of genyophrynine genera may be found in the following works: Burton, 1986 (Cophixalus, Genyophryne); Fry, 1912 (Austrochaperina); Fry, 1916 (Aphantophryne); Méhely¨, 1901 (Austrochaperina as Chaperina; Copiula; Cophixalus as Phrynixalus biroi; Oreophryne as Sphenophryne biroi); Zweifel, 1971 (Genyophryne); Zweifel, 1985b (Cophixalus; Austrochaperina as Sphenophryne); Zweifel and Parker, 1989 (Aphantophryne and Cophixalus). Wandolleck (1911) illustrated disarticulated skull bones of Sphenophryne, Liophryne (as Sphenophryne schlaginhaufeni), and Oreophryne (as Mehelyia).
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SPHENOPHRYNE - American Museum of Natural History

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