Tadpoles of Two Species in the Hyla polytaenia Species Group and Comparison with Other Tadpoles of Hyla polytaenia and Hyla pulchella Groups (Anura, Hylidae)

The Hyla polytaenia species group presently includes Hyla buriti, Hyla cipoensis, Hyla goiana, Hyla leptolineata, Hyla phaeopleura, Hyla polytaenia, and Hyla stenocephala and is characterized by small body size (males 25.637.6 mm, females 29.0-41.5 mm), elongated body, narrow head, dorsal longitudinal stripes, and no bars or blotches on anterior or posterior faces of thighs and inguinal region (Cruz and Caramaschi, 1998; Caramaschi and Cruz, 1999, 2000). Hyla leptolineata was previously considered to be related to Hyla guentheri (Braun and Braun, 1977), but was included in the H. polytaenia group by Frost (2000). Hyla caingua was included in the H. polytaenia group in the original description (Carrizo, 1990) but was not included in this group by Cruz and Caramaschi (1998). Both H. caingua and H. guentheri are associated with Hyla pulchella and related species, which constitute a group close to the H. polytaenia species group (Cruz and Caramaschi, 1998; Frost, 2000). The H. pulchella species group is characterized by hypertrophied forelimbs and projecting prepollical spines in adult males and generalized, stream-adapted tadpoles (Duellman et al., 1997). These characters are shared by frogs in the Hyla cir-