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| Cyrtodactylus rufford
Luu, Calame, Nguyen, Le, Bonkowski & Ziegler, 2016
FIGURE 3. Dorsal view of the paratype of Cyrtodactylus rufford sp. nov. (IEBR R.2015.34) in life from Khammouane Province, central Laos.
Photo: V. Q. Luu. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4067.2.4 |
Abstract
We describe a new species of the gekkonid genus Cyrtodactylus from Khammouane Province, central Laos based on morphological and molecular data. Morphologically, Cyrtodactylus rufford sp. nov. differs from its congeners by a unique combination of the following characters: medium size, SVL reaching 72.5 mm; dorsal pattern with three or four light transverse bands between limb insertions; one intersupranasal; 14–16 irregular dorsal tubercle rows at midbody, weakly developed in the paravertebral region; 27–29 ventral scale rows between ventrolateral folds; 42–43 precloacal and femoral pores in a continuous row in males, enlarged femoral and precloacal scales present; 4 or 5 postcloacal tubercles on each side; dorsal tubercles present at base of tail; medial subcaudal scales enlarged. Molecular analyses show that the new species is closely related to C. khammouanensis, which was originally described from Khammouane Province.
Keywords: Reptilia, Cyrtodactylus rufford sp. nov., Khammouane Province, morphology, phylogeny, taxonomy
Etymology. The new species is named in honour of the Rufford Foundation (UK) for its support to herpetofaunal research and conservation in Laos. The species epithet is to be treated as a noun in apposition, invariable. As common names, we suggest Ki Chiem Rufford (Laotian) and Rufford Bent-toed Gecko (English).
Natural history. The type series of the new species was found between 20:00 and 21:00, on a karst cliff near the entrance of Nang Log Cave, from 0.3 m to 2 m height above the forest floor, at elevations between 160 and 180 m a.s.l. Nang Log Cave is situated within an isolated karst mountain surrounded by secondary forest, plantations, and some huts for tourists. The cave is a tourism site, only 50 m distant from Road 12 and 64 km from the border of Vietnam. The humidity was approximately 80% and the air temperature ranged from 24 to 26°C (Fig. 5). Other species found on the same karst wall within a 300 meters range of the type locality were the lizard Gekko gecko (Linnaeus), and the tree frog species Rhacophorus spelaeus Orlov, Gnophanxay, Phimminith & Phomphoumy, as well as the Huntsman Spider Heteropoda maxima Jaeger, and the long-legged cave centipede Thereuopoda longicornis (Fabricius).
Vinh Quang Luu, Thomas Calame, Truong Quang Nguyen, Minh Duc Le, Michael Bonkowski and Thomas Ziegler. 2016. Cyrtodactylus rufford, A New Cave-dwelling Bent-toed Gecko (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from Khammouane Province, central Laos.
Zootaxa. 4067(2); DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4067.2.4
Zootaxa. 4067(2); DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4067.2.4
