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Issue: Vol. 5642 No. 5: 3 Jun. 2025
Type: Article
Published: 2025-06-03
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5642.5.2
Page range: 427-450
Abstract views: 380
PDF downloaded: 9

A new species of salamander of the genus Bolitoglossa (Caudata: Plethodontidae) from the highest massif of the Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica

Programa de Posgrado en Biología; Universidad de Costa Rica; 11501-2060 San Pedro; San José; Costa Rica.
Museo de Zoología; Centro de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Ecología Tropical; Universidad de Costa Rica; San José; Costa Rica.
Escuela de Biología; Universidad de Costa Rica; San Pedro; 11501-2060 San José; Costa Rica.
Museo de Zoología; Centro de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Ecología Tropical; Universidad de Costa Rica; San José; Costa Rica.; Escuela de Biología; Universidad de Costa Rica; San Pedro; 11501-2060 San José; Costa Rica.; Departamento de Zoología; Instituto de Biología; UNAM; AP 70-153 Ciudad Universitaria; CP 04510; Ciudad de México; México.
Amphibia Isthmian Central America Neotropics Páramo Phylogenetics Taxonomy

Abstract

The mountains of Isthmian Central America (ICA) are biodiversity hotspot and contain a high number of endemic amphibians, many of which have been described from the region in recent decades. Neotropical salamanders of the genus Bolitoglossa have undergone an extensive diversification in the mountains of ICA, specifically in the Cordillera de Talamanca The páramo of the Cordillera de Talamanca, despite being only 1.5% of its total area, harbors six species of Bolitoglossa, which represents 14.2% of the species of the genus in the region. Based on molecular and morphological analyses, we describe a new species of the Bolitoglossa subpalmata species group from the highest massif of ICA, the páramo of the Chirripó National Park. This new species emphasizes the importance of the Cordillera de Talamanca for the speciation of salamanders in ICA and as an important site for their conservation and study.

 

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How to Cite

Klank, J., Chaves, G., Castro, K. & Arias, E. (2025) A new species of salamander of the genus Bolitoglossa (Caudata: Plethodontidae) from the highest massif of the Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. Zootaxa, 5642 (5), 427–450. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5642.5.2