Sachatamia


Sachatamia is a small genus of glass frogs. They are found in Central America and northern South America at altitudes below above sea level.

Etymology

The generic name Sachatamia is derived from the Quichua words sacha for "forest" and tamia for "rain". This is a reference to the tropical rainforest habitat of these frogs.

Description

Sachatamia have moderate to extensive webbing between third and fourth fingers. The dorsum is lavender in preserved individuals and may have spots. Internal features include green bones, lobed liver that is covered by a transparent hepatic peritoneum, whereas the ventral parietal peritoneum is white in its anterior part and transparent in its poster part. The digestive tract is translucent. In terms of osteology, Sachatamia possess vomerine teeth and quadratojugal bone that is articulating with maxilla. The humeral spines are present in adult males of some of the species.
While distinct from most other glass frogs, there are no characters that could unambiguously place a species in Sachatamia or in the genus Rulyrana; genetic data are needed for an unambiguous allocation. The two genera, however, have disjunct distribution areas.

Ecology and reproduction

Sachatamia inhabit rainforests. The males call while sitting on leaves or rocks. The pigmented eggs are deposited on leaves or rocks.

Species

There are four species:
The AmphibiaWeb places Sachatamia orejuela in the genus Rulyrana.