The genus Pristimantis, with over 637 species, is the most diverse vertebrate lineage in the Neotropics. Despite this diversity, advertisement calls – acoustic signals essential for species delimitation, conservation monitoring, and reproductive ecology – remain poorly documented. We present the first comprehensive assessment of advertisement call knowledge in Pristimantis through a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature (1983–2026). We identified 115 studies describing calls for 160 of 637 species (25.27%). We additionally developed a 12-variable quality index revealing a marked positive trend in reporting standards from 2014 onwards. Our analysis reveals strong geographic, taxonomic, and conservation biases. Megadiverse countries harbouring over 80% of species (Colombia, Ecuador, Perú), show low documentation rates (12–22%) and threatened species are consistently underrepresented (15–20%). Coverage among species groups varies widely (0–66%), reflecting differences in vocal behaviour and detectability. Notably, only 25.0% of species with described calls have complete documentation, including voucher specimen, deposited audio recording, and type locality description, underscoring persistent gaps in traceability and reproducibility. These deficiencies limit passive acoustic monitoring, automated species recognition, and evidence-based conservation. Our findings provide a quantitative baseline to prioritise research, guide fieldwork in undersampled regions, and promote collaborative efforts to address critical knowledge gaps in this hyperdiverse genus.
Anuran communication, conservation, acoustic monitoring, vocalisations, taxonomic bias