Abstract
A new species of rhacophorid of the genus Polypedates is described from Gunung Murud, Sarawak State, north-western Borneo. Polypedates chlorophthalmus, new species is compared with congeners from Borneo and other parts of southeast Asia. The new species is diagnosable in showing the following combination of characters: SVL 62.1 mm in the unique holotype; snout rounded, not projecting beyond mandible; head slightly wider than long; canthus rostralis sloping; no dermal flap along forearm; supracloacal fold absent; skin not co-ossified to cranial bones, median lingual process absent; supratympanic fold distinct; dorsum brown, with a thin dark gray line at back of forehead, nearly converging at the axilla, lacking dark lines; lower flanks and anterior edge of thighs with dark blotches; throat with dark pigmentation; and iris bright green.
KEY WORDS. – Polypedates, new species, Polypedates chlorophthalmus, Rhacophoridae, systematics, new species, Borneo.
Etymology. – The new species is named for its remarkable green iris, from the Greek for green-eyed.
Ecological notes. – The holotype was found on vegetation, ca. 0.8 m above a granite boulder at the edge of a forest stream. It was a gravid female, containing large and small unpigmented ova, assumed to represent multiple clutches. The males, call and larval stages of the new species remain unknown. The following species of anuran amphibians were found sympatric with the new species : Ansonia sp., Meristogenys whiteheadi and Rhacophorus angulirostris. Because of the relative inaccessibility of the site, follow-up visits to collect additional specimens have not been possible.
Das, I. 2005. A new Species of Polypedates (Anura: Rhacophoridae) from Gunung Murud, Sarawak (Northwestern Borneo). The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 53.2: 265-270.: http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/rbz/biblio/53/53rbz265-270.pdf http://www.aseanbiodiversity.info/Abstract/53005441.pdf
