Abstract
A new species of frog in the genus Microhyla is described from Sumatra, Indonesia based on molecular and morphological characters. This new species was previously confused with M. achatina, a Javan endemic. This new species is diagnosable from its congeners by possessing a medium size (SVL in adult males 18.20–21.32 mm, in adult females 20.37–25.51 mm), a stout body, a nostril–eyelid length being about half of the snout length, having a single outer palmar tubercle, a tibiotarsal articulation reaching the center of the eye (when the hindlimbs are stretched and adpressed to the body), having finger and toe tips dilated, having the dorsum with medial longitudinal grooves, and excibiting a very thin and short dark stripe on the temporal region above a wider cream stripe, extending from the postorbital area to insertion of forelimb. Additionally, the new species is characterized by possessing relatively little foot webbing. Uncorrected 16S rRNA sequence divergences between the new taxon and sequences for other congeneric species available ranged from 4.8 to 15.0%.
Keywords: cryptic species, mitochondrial DNA, phylogeny, taxonomy
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| Figure 4 A. In life, dorsolateral and ventral view of male holotype of Microhyla gadjahmadai sp. nov. (MZB Amph 26081) from Rejang Lebong Regency, in the province of Bengkulu, Sumatra, Indonesia (Photographs by E. N. Smith). |
Microhyla gadjahmadai sp. nov.
Diagnosis. The new species is assigned to Microhyla because of having a small size (SVL < 30 mm), narrow head and mouth, tympanum hidden by skin, maxillary and vomerine teeth absent, and a reduced first finger length (Tschudi,1838, Malkmus et al.,2002). Microhyla gadjahmadai sp. nov. is diagnosable from its congeners by having a medium size (for Microhyla, SVL adult males 18.2–21.3 mm, adult females 20.4–25.5 mm), stout body, a nostril–eyelid length of half the length of the snout, a single outer palmar tubercle, the tibiotarsal articulation reaching the center of eye, finger and toe tips dilated, median longitudinal grooves on dorsum, relatively reduced toe webbing (free of webbing: one and three quarter phalanges on outer surface of second toe, three phalanges on inner and outer surface of third toe, four phalanges on inner and outer surfaces of fourth toe, and two and three quarter phalanges on inner surface of fifth toe), and a thin-short dark temporal stripe over a wider cream stripe, extending from postorbital area to insertion of forelimb.
Etymology. The specific epithet honors the military leader and hero Gadjah Mada, who in the fourteenth century unified the whole of the Nusantara (i.e., Malay Archipelago) under the Javanese rule of the Hindu Majapahit Empire.
Synonomy: Microhyla sp. 3: Matsui et al., 2011, p. 168 & 171
Diagnosis. The new species is assigned to Microhyla because of having a small size (SVL < 30 mm), narrow head and mouth, tympanum hidden by skin, maxillary and vomerine teeth absent, and a reduced first finger length (Tschudi,1838, Malkmus et al.,2002). Microhyla gadjahmadai sp. nov. is diagnosable from its congeners by having a medium size (for Microhyla, SVL adult males 18.2–21.3 mm, adult females 20.4–25.5 mm), stout body, a nostril–eyelid length of half the length of the snout, a single outer palmar tubercle, the tibiotarsal articulation reaching the center of eye, finger and toe tips dilated, median longitudinal grooves on dorsum, relatively reduced toe webbing (free of webbing: one and three quarter phalanges on outer surface of second toe, three phalanges on inner and outer surface of third toe, four phalanges on inner and outer surfaces of fourth toe, and two and three quarter phalanges on inner surface of fifth toe), and a thin-short dark temporal stripe over a wider cream stripe, extending from postorbital area to insertion of forelimb.
Etymology. The specific epithet honors the military leader and hero Gadjah Mada, who in the fourteenth century unified the whole of the Nusantara (i.e., Malay Archipelago) under the Javanese rule of the Hindu Majapahit Empire.
Natural history. Microhyla gadjahmadai sp. nov. is distributed in southern Sumatra, inhabiting from primary forest, secondary forest and open area such as farming area (Bengkulu). The tadpole and advertisement call of this species are still unknown.
Range. The new species is curently known from Bengkulu (Rejang Lebong, Bengkulu Utara, and Kepahiang Regency), Lampung (Tanggamus and Lampung Tengah Regency), and South Sumatra (Muara Enim Regency and Pagar Alam City) province with elevation range from 700–1647 m a.s.l.
Vestidhia Yunisya Atmaja, Amir Hamidy, Tuty Arisuryanti, Masafumi Matsui and Eric N. Smith. 2018. A New Species of Microhyla (Anura: Microhylidae) from Sumatra, Indonesia. Treubia. 45; 25-46. DOI: 10.14203/treubia.v45i0.3625
