Stereocyclops palmipes

Diagnosis. Stereocyclops was not addressed by modern phylogenetic analyses (Frost et al. 2006; Van der Meijden et al. 2007; Pyron & Wiens 2011) and a thorough morphological study of the genus still needs to be done. Thus, we assign S. palmipes sp. nov. to this genus on the basis of overall similarity to other species. Stereocyclops palmipes sp. nov. is characterized by: (1) medium size (SVL 43.7 – 48.5 mm in males; SVL 48.4 – 56.7 mm in females); (2) in males, large, numerous dermal spines concentrated in the inferior border of mandible, forming a band; (3) dermal spines scattered on ventral surfaces of body, arms, fingers, legs, toes, and pericloacal region of males, and agglomerate only in pericloacal region and ventral surfaces of thighs in females; (4) fringes and interdigital membranes of toes developed, slightly larger in males (plantar webbing formula I 2 + – 3 + II 2 - – 4 + III 3 – 3 - IV 3 - – 2 + V) than in females (plantar webbing formula I 2 + – 3 II 2 - – 4 + III 4 + – 4 + IV 4 + – 2 + V); (5) color pattern composed by two mid-dorsal, poorly defined, dark brown stripes from the inguinal regions to head, passing on the occipital dermal fold and reaching the upper eyelid. Comparisons with other species. The presence of well developed interdigital membranes on feet distinguishes Stereocyclops palmipes sp. nov. from both S. incrassatus and S. parkeri, in which webbing is absent or vestigial. Additionally, S. palmipes sp. nov. is distinguished from S. parkeri by the presence of large mandibular, ventral, and pericloacal dermal spines (dermal spines small, visible only under magnification, few, very scattered in S. parkeri) and by the color pattern (mid-dorsal dark stripes converging and uniting before the occipital dermal fold, forming an arrow-shaped dorsal pattern in S. parkeri).