[from S. Blair Hedges, William E. Duellman & Matthew P. Heinicke, New World direct-developing frogs (Anura: Terrarana): Molecular phylogeny, classification, biogeography and conservation.  Zootaxa 1737 1-182 (2008).]

 

Terrarana (4 families,  882 species)

            Brachycephalidae( 2 genera, 40 species)

            Craugastoridae  (2 genera, 113 species)

            Eleutherodactylidae (4 genera, 199 species)

                        Eleutherodactylus (5 subgenera, 185 species)

                                    Eleutherodactylus (54 species)

                                                Martinencis series (3 groups, 20 species)

                                                            Antillensis group (4 subgroups, 14 species)

                                                                        Eleutherodactylus antillensis

                                                                        E. brittoni

                                                                        E. hedricki

 

                                                                        Eleutherodactylus gryllus

                                                                        E. jasperi

                                                                        E. juanriveroi

 

                                                                        Eleutherodactylus locustus

                                                                        E. eneidae

                                                                        E. cooki

                                                           

                                                                        Eleutherodactylus wightmanae

                                                                        E. coqui

                                                                        E. portoricensis

                                                                        E. schwartzi

                                               

                                                Richmondi series  (3 species)

                                                                        Eleutherodactylus richmondi

                                                                        E. karlschmidti

                                                                        E. unicolor

            Strabomantidae(16 genera, 530 species)

 

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Here is a small part of the Hedges et al. elaboration of the Brachycephalidae branch of the Hyloides limb. The Terrarana are terrestrial, direct-developing frogs of the New World.  The subgenus Eleutherodactylus is found in the West Indies.  Some species have been introduced elsewhere (as on the Island of Hawaii, where E. coqui is considered to be a major pest).   Our eight Puerto-Rican frogs cover only a tiny corner of the expanded tree, yet the proportion of total AP hair cells in the caudal extension ranged from 40% in a male E. hedricki  to 65% in a female E. coqui. For E. antillensis, E. cooki, E. coqui (both sexes) and E. richmondi, it was in the 55 to 65% range.  For E.wightmanae and E. portoricensis it was in the 45 to 55% range; and for E. hedricki and E. brittoni it was in the 35 to 45% range.     At 65%, the caudal extension contains nearly twice as many hair cells as the rest of the caudal patch and the rostral patch taken together.  Hedges et al. stated that the historic taxonomic confusion regarding the frogs they placed in Terrarana was a consequence of the small number of characters available for study, and the plasticity of the few “useful” characters.  It is not at all clear that AP morphology would comprise any useful characters, but it certainly is plastic—at least among these eight members of the subgenus Eleutherodactylus,  seven members of the Antillensis group.