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| Cyrtodactylus phamiensis L. L. Grismer, Aowphol, J. L. Grismer, Aksornneam, Quah, Murdoch, Gregory, Nguyen, Kaatz, Bringsøe & Rujirawan, 2024 ตุ๊กกายผาหมี || DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1203.122758 |
Abstract
Phylogenetic and morphological analyses delimit and diagnose, respectively, a new population of a karst-dwelling Cyrtodactylus from extreme northern Thailand. The new species, Cyrtodactylus phamiensis sp. nov., of the chauquangensis group inhabits karst caves and outcroppings and karst vegetation in the vicinity of Pha Mi Village in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. Within the chauquangensis group, Cyrtodactylus phamiensis sp. nov. is the earliest diverging species of a strongly supported clade composed of the granite-dwelling C. doisuthep and the karst-dwelling sister species Cyrtodactylus sp. 6 and C. erythrops. The nearly continuous karstic habitat between the type locality of Cyrtodactylus phamiensis sp. nov. and its close relatives Cyrtodactylus sp. 6 and C. erythrops, extends for approximately 200 km along the border region of Thailand and the eastern limit of the Shan Plateau of Myanmar. Further exploration of this region, especially the entire eastern ~ 95% of the Shan Plateau, will undoubtably recover new populations whose species status will need evaluation. As in all other countries of Indochina and northern Sundaland, the continual discovery of new karst-dwelling populations of Cyrtodactylus shows no signs of tapering off, even in relatively well-collected areas. This only highlights the conservation priority that these unique karstic landscapes still lack on a large scale across all of Asia.
Key words: Bent-toed gecko, genetics, Indochina, integrative taxonomy, karst, morphology
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| Adult male holotype of Cyrtodactylus phamiensis sp. nov. A dorsal view B ventral view C dorsal view of head D gular region E thighs and precloacal region F ventral view of right manus G ventral view of left pes H subcaudal region I lateral view of left side of head. Photographs by Attapol Rujirawan. |
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| Selected individuals of the type series and referred specimen of Cyrtodactylus phamiensis sp. nov. from Pha Mi Village, Wiang Phang Kham Subdistrict, Mae Sai District, Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. |
Cyrtodactylus phamiensis sp. nov.
Diagnosis: Cyrtodactylus phamiensis sp. nov. can be separated from all other species of the chauquangensis group by the combination of having a maximum SVL = 74.4 mm (female); 8–12 supralabials; 9–11 infralabials; 30–43 paravertebral tubercles; 19–25 rows of longitudinally arranged tubercles; 29–37 longitudinal rows of ventrals; 6–9 expanded subdigital lamellae on the fourth toe; 12–14 unmodified subdigital lamellae on the fourth toe; 19–22 total subdigital lamellae on the fourth toe; 19–28 total number of enlarged femoral scales; 9–14 total number of femoral pores in males (n = 4); 6–11 enlarged precloacals; 4–6 precloacal pores in males (n = 4); two or three rows of large post-precloacal scales; enlarged femorals and enlarged ...
Etymology: The species name phamiensis is in reference to the type locality at Pha Mi Village, Wiang Phang Kham Subdistrict, Mae Sai District, Chiang Rai Province, Thailand (Fig. 1).
L. Lee Grismer, Anchalee Aowphol, Jesse L. Grismer, Akrachai Aksornneam, Evan S. H. Quah, Matthew L. Murdoch, Jeren J. Gregory, Eddie Nguyen, Amanda Kaatz, Henrik Bringsøe and Attapol Rujirawan. 2024. A New Species of the Cyrtodactylus chauquangensis Group (Squamata, Gekkonidae) from the borderlands of extreme northern Thailand. ZooKeys. 1203: 211-238. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1203.122758
