Yokoyama, M.

 The Stout Four-eyed Frog (Pleurodema brachyops) is native to the northern South American and Central American nations of Guyana, northern Brazil (Roraima State), Venezuela (including Isla Margarita), eastern and northern Colombia into the Pacific lowlands of Panama from Azuero to central Panama, and Aruba (La Marca et al. 2010). The species is considered introduced on Curaçao, Bonaire, and Klein Bonaire (Hummelinck 1940; van Buurt 2005). Herin we present the first observations of P. brachyops on both Dutch and French sides of Sint Maarten/St. Martin, where it is te fifth anuran species to be introduced and established after the Lesser Antillean Frog, Martinique Frog, Cuban Flat-headed Frog and Cuban Treefrog. Stout Four-eyed Frogs were almost certainly introduced to teh islands as a consequence of ornamental plant imports.

This field guide is not a comprehensive guide to the wildlife of St. Martin. The species included are restricted primarily to those which the author has personally seen and photographed. That said, this guide does include most of the species one is likely to see when visiting the island. Certain taxa are covered briefly, and many species are omitted entirely. 

Conversely, certain areas are covered in significant detail. This is particularly true of species and varieties that are endemic either to St. Martin or restricted to the Lesser Antilles. For example, many bird species on the island are common throughout the Americas and information about them is readily available from a variety of sources. On the other hand, several of the lizard species present are limited to just a few small islands and have been the subject of far less study.

This volume concludes with some notes on conservation and descriptions of some representative natural habitats on the island.