Hypopachus Explained

Hypopachus is a genus of microhylid frogs (common name: sheep frogs) found in the Americas between Costa Rica and the southern United States.^[1] They can bury themselves under the ground or moss. Its name means ‘somewhat thick’, referring to its tough skin.^[2]

Species

The five species are:^[1]

• Hypopachus barberi – Barber's sheep frog
• Hypopachus guancasco – Lenca sheep frog^[3]
• Hypopachus pictiventris
• Hypopachus ustus
• Hypopachus variolosus – sheep frog

Notes and References

1. Web site: Hypopachus Keferstein, 1867 . Frost, Darrel R. . 2014 . Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0 . American Museum of Natural History . 22 March 2014.
2. Book: Lee, Julian C.. The amphibians and reptiles of the Yucatán Peninsula. registration. 1996. Comstock. 978-0-8014-2450-2. 119. Hypopachus is from the Greek hypo, meaning "under", "beneath", or "less than usual" and pachys, "thick"..
3. Firneno, T. J., Jr., M. W. Itgen, J. L. Jacobs, C. X. Mcdaniels, I. R. Luque-Montes, L. D. Wilson, and J. H. Townsend. 2021. Integrating phylogenetics, morphology, and osteology to delimit a new species of endemic montane sheep frog (Microhylidae: Hypopachus) from the Lenca Highlands of Honduras. Systematics and Biodiversity 19: 186–208 (https://doi.org/10.1080/14772000.2020.1841325).