Description

A relatively small species of Ameerega, with adults 18-25 mm in SVL. Frogs from near the type locality are black or dark brown on the dorsum with white dorsolateral stripes and white labial stripes. Yellow or orange flash marks present above groin, on shanks, and under arms. Ventral coloration is blue with black marbling. Populations further south have less prominent dorsolateral stripes and a brownish dorsum. The southernmost population (near Tocache) lacks entirely dorsolateral stripes, has a copper-brown dorsum, orange flash marks, and has very granular dorsal skin. First finger longer than second.

Tadpoles are dark brown with two prominent white spots lateral to the mouth which are visible from the dorsal aspect, and a labial tooth row formula of 2(2)/3.

This species was long thought to be a population of A. picta (Silverstone 1976) and later A. hahneli (Lötters et al. 1997), although had been suspected by some as belonging to a distinct species on the basis of advertisement call. Roberts et al. (2006) presented a molecular phylogeny demonstrating the clear existence of two distinct clades of putative A. hahneli. One clade (the nominal clade) contained individuals from the lower Amazon of Peru and Brazil, whereas the other clade was restricted to the east-Andean versant of central Peru. Twomey and Brown (2008) described this second clade as a distinct species, using molecular genetics, call parameters, and tadpole morphology as the basis for diagnosis.