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| Tylototriton anhuiensis
Qian, Sun, Li, Guo, Pan, Kang, Wang, Jiang, Wu & Zhang, 2017
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A new species of the genus Tylototriton is described, from Yuexi county, Anhui province, in the south of the Dabie Mountains. It is based on morphological and molecular analysis. The new species is identified as belonging to the Tylototriton asperrimus group and shares a number of similarities with T. wenxianensis, T. broadoridgus and T. dabienicus. The diagnostic characteristics of the new species are as follows: the head length is greater than the width of the head; bony ridges on the head are prominent and necked-in; the distal digit ends, ventral digits, peripheral area of the cloaca and the tail’s lower edge are orange. The result from the molecular analysis of the genus Tylototriton (including the type specimen of the new species) based on three mitochondrial genes (ND1, ND2 and CYTB) indicated that the new species was close to T. wenxianensis, T. dabienicus, and T. broadoridgus, but formed an independent clade. This result was consistent with the morphological analysis above, which supports the theory that the population distributed in the south of the Dabie Mountains, namely in from Yuexi county, Anhui province, represented a distinct species, Tylototriton anhuiensis sp. nov.
Keywords: new species; Tylototriton anhuiensis sp. nov.; southern Dabie Mountains; taxonomy; morphology; molecular analyses
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| Figure 5 Photos of Tylototriton anhuiensis sp. nov.. (upper) Dorsal view of T. anhuiensis sp. nov.; (lower) dorsal view of the head and trunk. |
Tylototriton anhuiensis sp. nov.
Diagnosis: the new species has a series of morphological
characteristics different from other members of the genus
Tylototriton: 1) the head length is greater than the width
of the head; 2) the bony ridges on the head are notable
and necked-in; 3) the tail length is less than the snout-vent
length; 4) the ventral tail fin fold extends to the cloacal
posterior margin; 5) the distal digit ends, ventral digits,
peripheral area of cloaca and the tail’s lower margin are
orange; 6) relative length of toes: 3>4>2>5>1.
Etymology: the name of the new species is derived
from its current distribution range in the southern Dabie
Mountains in Anhui province. The suggested English
name is the Anhui Knobby Newt.
Lifu Qian, Xiaonan Sun, Jiaqi Li, Weibo Guo, Tao Pan, Xing Kang, Hui Wang, Jianping Jiang, Jun Wu and Baowei Zhang. 2017. A New Species of the Genus Tylototriton (Amphibia: Urodela: Salamandridae) from the Southern Dabie Mountains in Anhui Province. Asian Herpetological Research. 8(3); 151-164. ahr-journal.com/en/oa/DArticle.aspx?type=view&id=20170301
