Baez et al. (2009) modified Fabrezi's character list - deleting some autapomorphies, rewording or
splitting some characters, removing many soft part characters, and adding a few new ones.
1. Nasals medial contact: 0 - present, 1 absent 1.
2. Cranial exostosis: 0 - absent; 1 - present
3. Shape of skull roof in orbital region (i.e. Fr-Par!): 0 parallel-sided, 1 wider anteriorly 2
wider posteriorly
4. Minimum width of the skull roof in the orbital region relative to the orbital width: 0 - less
than 1/4; 1-between 1/4 and 1/3; 2-more than 1/3 (this is problematic as it is affected by
skull width. Frogs with wide FrP in wide skulls come out the same as those with narrow
FrP in narrow skulls)
5. Frontoparietal relation: 0-no medial contact; 1-sutured or partially fused; 2: fused along
entire length
6. Frontoparietal fenestra: 0 - completely surrounded anteriorly by sphenethmoid; 1-not
completely surrounded anteriorly by sphenethmoid
7. Dorsal exposure of sphenethmoid: 0 - absent; 1 - present
8. Ventral configuration of sphenethmoid: 0 single; 1 - divided
9. Parieto-squamosal arch: 0 - absent; 1 - present
10. Otic ramus of squamosal: 0 - absent or rudimentary; 1 - overlapping crista parotica; 2 –
overlapping crista parotica and otoccipital.
11. Zygomatic ramus of squamosal: 0 - reduced; 1 - moderately developed ending free; 2 well developed, articulated with maxilla
12. Premaxillary and maxillary teeth: 0 - absent; 1 - present
13. Tooth morphology: 0-bicuspid; 1-monocuspid
14. Quadratojugal: 0 - absent; 1-present
15. Contact of quadratojugal and maxilla: 0-absent; 1 - present
16. Palatine shelf of the premaxilla: 0- present; 1 - absent.
17. Lingual process of premaxilla: 0- absent; 1- present
18. Vomerine teeth: 0-present; 1-absent
19. Anterior process of vomer: 0 - reaching the maxillary arch; 1 - not reaching the
maxillary arch
20: Palatine as a separate element (neopalatine of Trueb 1993): 0 - absent; 1 - present
21. Anterior ramus of pterygoid: 0 - long, reaching antorbital planum; 1 - short
22. Contact of pterygoid and parasphenoid: 0 - absent; 1 - present
23. Shape of anterior end of cultriform process of parasphenoid: 0 - serrated or rounded;
1- acuminate; 2- notched
24. Anterior extent of cultriform process of parasphenoid: 0- clearly posterior to the level
of the antorbital plane; 1- at the level of the antorbital plane or slightly posteriorly; 2anterior to level of antorbital plane.
25. Odontoids on lower jaw: 0 - absent; 1 - present
26. Hyalia general configuration: 0 - complete; 1-distally incomplete; 2-proximally
incomplete
27. Anterior processes of the hyale: 0 - absent; 1 - present
28. Anterolateral process of hyoid plate: 0 - absent; 1 - present
29. Shape of anterolateral process of hyoid plate: 0 - pointed; 1 - dilated distally; 2 expanded
30. Posterolateral process of hyoid plate: 0 - absent; 1 - present
31. Posteromedial process of hyoid ossification: 0 - present on a cartilaginous stalk; 1 abuts directly on the hyoid; 2 - invades the hyoid
32. Parahyoid bone: 0 - absent; 1 - present
33. Calcifications on the hyoid plate: 0 - absent; 1 - present
34. Number of presacral vertebrae: 0 - eight; 1 - seven; 2 - seven (8 fused to sacrum).
35. Cervical cotyle arrangement: 0 - fully confluent (Lynch type 3); 1 - narrowly separated
but distinct (Lynch's type 2; 2 - widely separated (Lynch's type 1)
36. Condition of centrum of posterior-most presacral vertebra: 0 - opisthocoelous; 1 procoelous; 2 - biconcave.
37. Neural arches of posterior-most four presacrals: 0 - imbricate; 1- non-imbricate
38. Neural spines of anterior presacrals: 0 - low; 1 - high
39. Orientation of transverse processes of 6th presacral vertebra: 0 - nearly perpendicular
to axial axis; 1 - moderately forward; 2 - markedly forward; 3 - posterior
40. Length of transverse processes of the posterior presacral vertebrae relative to the
sacral diapophyses: 0 - clearly shorter; 1 - equal or subequal.
41. Uncinate processes on transverse process of Vert 3: 0-present; 1-absent
42. Expansion of sacral diapophyses: 0 - widely expanded (length of distal end of sacral
rib equal or greater than total width of sacrum); 1 - moderately dilated (anterior and
posterior margins of sacral rib clearly divergent, distal end of rib flared by comparison
with proximal end, but less than total sacral width); 2 - cylindrical (anterior and posterior
margins of sacral rib more or less parallel, distal end narrow and similar in diameter to
proximal end)
(This is modified from Baez et al. 2009 who had: 0 - widely expanded (ratio of length of
distal end to mediolateral width great than 1.5); 1 - moderately expanded (ratio of distal
end to mediolateral width greater than 0.75 but less than 1.5); 2 - unexpanded or narrow
(ratio of distal end to mediolateral width less than 0.75). However, this does not work well.
The character description does not say, but presumably means, the total width across the
sacrum. However - measuring three of the taxa coded 0 (i.e. length/width greater than 1.5),
they all fall in the 1 category (1.1-1.3, 1.2, 1.1).
43. Articulation of sacrum and urostyle: 0 - bicondylar; 1 - monocondylar; 2 - fused.
44. Transverse processes on the urostyle: 0-present; 1-absent
45. Relative length of the urostyle: 0-nearly as long, or longer, than combined presacrals;
1-much shorter.
46. Free ribs: 0 - absent; 1 - present.
47. Free intervertebral discs in subadults: (0) absent; (1) present.
48. Dorsal shield: 0 - absent; 1 - present
49. Omosternum: 0 - absent; 1- present
50. Omosternum condition: 0 - completely cartilaginous; 1 - with ossified style
51. Shape of ossified style of omosternum: 0 - proximally forked; 1 - proximally not forked.
52. Sternum condition: 0 - completely cartilaginous; 1- with ossified style
53. Sternum expansion of the coracoid relative to its length: o-less than one half; 1-more
than one half
54. Shape of clavicle: 0-curved; 1-straight
55. Clavicle orientation: 0, directed anteriorly; 1, perpendicular to sagittal plane
56. Epicoracoid cartilages in the coracoideal region: 0 - overlapping; 1 - not overlapping
(usally extremely reduced)
57. Length of scapula, maximum diameter of glenoid fossa relative to the scapular shaft: 0
- more than one; 1 - between one and one half; 2 - less than one half
58. Anterior lamina of scapula: 0, absent; 1, present
59. Clavicle-scapular relation: 0-overlapping anteriorly; 1-abutting medially; 2-fused
60. Intercalary elements: 0 - absent; 1 - present
61. Postaxial carpals (ulnare and distals 5 and 4): 0-all free; 1-ulnare free, 5+4 fused; 2.
ulnare free, 3+4+5 fused
62. Prepollex: 0 - one spherical proximal element; 1 - two elements, the distal one
enlongated; 2 - three or more elements; 3 - two elements, the distal one hypermorphic
63. Shape of terminal phalanx of finger IV: 0 - straight; 1 - curved
64. Distal tip of terminal phalanx of finger IV: 0 - simple (slightly knobbed or rounded);1 notched; 2 - T-shaped; 3 - Y - shaped; 4 - clearly knobbed.
65. Carpal torsion: 0-absent; 1-present
66. Well-developed dorsal crest on iliac shaft: 0 - absent; 1 - present.
67. Epipubis: 0 - absent; 1 - present
68. Femoral crest: 0 - absent; 1 - present
69. Os sesamoides tarsale: 0 - absent; 1 - present
70. Distal tarsals 3 and 2: 0 - free; 1 - fused.
71. Discrete distal tarsal 1: 0 - absent; 1 - present.
72. Prehallux: 0 - one spherical proximal element; 1 - two elements, the distal one
enlongate; 2 - three or more elements; 3 - two elements, the distal one hypermorphic,
spade-like
73. Shape of terminal phalanx of toe: 0 - straight; 1 - curved
74. Distal tip of terminal phalanx of toe: 0 - simple (slightly knobbed or rounded); 1 notched; 2 - T-shaped; 3 - Y-shaped; 4 - clearly knobbed.
75. Pupil shape: 0-vertical; 1-triangular; 2-horizontal