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| Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis
Grismer, Yushchenko, Pawangkhanant, Naiduangchan, Nazarov, Orlova, Suwannapoom & Poyarkov, 2020
จิ้งจกเรียวตะนาวศรี | Spotted Slender Gecko || DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4816.2.2
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Abstract
An integrative taxonomic analysis of newly discovered populations of Hemiphyllodactylus from Indochina recovered a new species from Peninsular Thailand and two others from Laos. The new Thai species, Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis sp. nov. described herein, is the sister species to all other species in the newly designated Indochina clade and has a unique spotted contrasting dorsal pattern not seen in any other species of Hemiphyllodactylus. This, along with its elongate and gracile body morphology, renders it remarkably convergent on the Philippine gecko Pseudogekko smaragdinus despite the fact it is deeply nested within Hemiphyllodactylus. The description of this new species underscores the depauperate nature of Hemiphyllodactylus diversity throughout Indochina in general and Thailand in particular compared to neighboring upland areas of Myanmar and Peninsular Malaysia. This especially underscores the need for continued herpetofaunal field surveys in montane areas of western Thailand.
Keywords: Reptilia, Phylogenetic systematics, Indochina, Thai-Malay Peninsula, taxonomy, convergent evolution
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| FIGURE 1. Confirmed localities of Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis sp. nov. and other species of Hemiphyllodactylus known from Thailand. The type locality of H. pardalis sp. nov. is indicated with a square; other localities are indicated with circles. Data for H. chiangmaiensis come from Grismer et al. (2014), data for H. flaviventris and H. khlonglanensis come from Sukprasert et al. (2018), data for H. cf. yunnanensis come from Zug (2010 and pers. comm, 2020), and data for H. typus come from voucher photos from Khao Luang, Nakhon Si Thammarat (LSUDPC 11147–50) in the south and Khao Yai, Nakkon Ratchasima (LSUDPC 11151–54) in the north. Photo thumbnail illustrates the paratype of Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis sp. nov. (AUP-00766, adult female), photo by Parinya Pawangkhanant. |
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| FIGURE 4. Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis sp. nov. in life. A. Female holotype of Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis sp. nov. (ZMMU R-16390) from Suang Phueng, Ratchaburi Province in life; photo Platon V. Yushchenko. B. Gravid H. pardalis sp. nov. (LSUDPC 11141, not collected) from Khao Sok National Park, Surat Thani Province; photo by Henrik Bringsøe. C. Gravid H. pardalis sp. nov. (LSUDPC 11144, not collected) from Kaeng Krachan National Park, Petchaburi Province; photo by Parinya Pawangkhanant. D. Female paratype of H. pardalis sp. nov. (AUP-00766; LSUDPC 11146) from Phanom District, Surat Thani Province; photo by Parinya Pawangkhanant. |
Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis sp. nov.
Spotted Slender Gecko
Distribution. Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis sp. nov. is endemic to Peninsular Thailand and is distributed along the northern section of the Tenasserim Mountain Range from at least Suan Phueng, Ratchaburi Province in the north to Phanom, Surat Thani Province in the south (Fig. 1). To date, the new species is confirmed from at least four localities in western and southern Thailand. The occurrence of the new species in the adjacent Tanintharyi Region of Myanmar is expected.
Etymology. The specific epithet “pardalis” is an adjective in nominative singular, derived from the Latin “pardus”, meaning leopard, and is given in reference to the spotted, leopard-like, dorsal pattern characteristic of the new species.
จิ้งจกเรียวตะนาวศรี, จิ้งจกแคระลายจุด
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| FIGURE 6. Comparison of body morphology and color pattern between Hemiphyllodactylus pardalis sp. nov. and Pseudogekko smaragdinus A. Female paratype of H. pardalis sp. nov. (AUP-00766; LSUDPC 11146) from Phanom District, Surat Thani Province; photo by Parinya Pawangkhanant. B. Male P. smaragdinus from Polillo, Philippines (CDS 1082). C. Female P. smaragdinus from Polillo Island, Philippines (CDS 1083). Photos by Cameron D. Siler. |
L. Lee Grismer, Platon V. Yushchenko, Parinya Pawangkhanant, Mali Naiduangchan, Roman A. Nazarov, Valentina F. Orlova, Chatmongkon Suwannapoom and Nikolay A. Poyarkov. 2020. A New Species of Hemiphyllodactylus Bleeker (Squamata; Gekkonidae) from Peninsular Thailand that converges in Morphology and Color pattern on Pseudogekko smaragdinus (Taylor) from the Philippines. Zootaxa. 4816(2); 171–190. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4816.2.2
