ALAMILLO, H.; Univ. of Missouri-Rolla: The validity of Phrynohyas venulosa (Laurenti, 1768)

Hylid frogs of the species Phrynohyas venulosa (Laurenti, 1768) occur from the northeastern Mexican state of Tamaulipas to the eastern Argentinian province of Entre Rios. The large and diverse geographic range of this taxon has caused many researchers to suspect that it comprises more than one species. In 1956, Duellman elevated seven species, although the validity of some of these species has been questioned. To determine if the name P. venulosa refers to a single valid taxon, and/or if Dulllman elevated groups that are valid, we examined the entire holdings of P. venulosa in the herpetological collections of the University of Kansas Natural History Museum, California Academy of Sciences, and the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at the University of California-Berkeley. My sample included specimens from all countries in the species range. I collected measurements for sixteen morphometric characters, ran a preliminarily Principal Components Analysis, and implemented a Discriminant Function Analysis to identify clusters that partition the species into distinct groups. The results of my analyses and consequences for the taxonomy of the species group will be discussed.