A new species of salamander of the genus Bolitoglossa (Caudata: Plethodontidae) from the highest massif of the Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica

The mountains of Isthmian Central America (ICA) are biodiversity hotspot and contain a high number of endemic amphibians, many of which have been described from the region in recent decades. Neotropical salamanders of the genus Bolitoglossa have undergone an extensive diversification in the mountains of ICA, specifically in the Cordillera de Talamanca The páramo of the Cordillera de Talamanca, despite being only 1.5% of its total area, harbors six species of Bolitoglossa, which represents 14.2% of the species of the genus in the region.

Based on molecular and morphological analyses, we describe a new species of the Bolitoglossa subpalmata species group from the highest massif of ICA, the páramo of the Chirripó National Park. This new species emphasizes the importance of the Cordillera de Talamanca for the speciation of salamanders in ICA and as an important site for their conservation and study.