The species is endemic to Hispaniola in the West Indies.

U. frenatus is found in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

[2] The preferred natural habitat of U. frenatus is forest at altitudes from sea level to 929 m (3,048 ft).

[2] Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Uromacer.

The subspecific name, wetmorei, is in honor of American ornithologist Alexander Wetmore.