A new Andean treefrog (Amphibia: group) from Ecuador: an example of community involvement for conservation.

We provide several lines of evidence to delimit a new species of and define its phylogenetic position inside the group. The new species is the sister taxon to and is related to a clade formed by and a putative new species from the province of El Oro in, southwestern Ecuador. sp. nov. is described from the montane forests of the Mira River basin in the extreme northwestern Ecuador. The new species is characterized as follows: tympanic annulus conspicuous, tip of snout in dorsal view subacuminate, middorsal stripe formed by melanophores larger and less dense, dorsal skin with individual iridophores forming dots, scarcely distributed across dorsum. Our study also highlights the importance of the Mira River Valley as a biogeographic barrier; suggesting research efforts north and south of the valley are likely to reveal additional endemic cryptic diversity. Finally, our partnership with Reserva: The Youth Land Trust, Rainforest Trust and EcoMinga Foundation has produced a novel and meaningful way to connect young people with biodiversity discovery and habitat conservation.