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Vietnamophryne vuquangensis Hoang, Jiang, Nguyen, Orlov, Le, Nguyen, Nguyen, Nguyen & Ziegler, 2021 |
Abstract
A new species of the genus Vietnamophryne is described from Vu Quang National Park in North Vietnam based on molecular phylogenetic and morphological analyses. The new species is morphologically distinct from congeners and can be easily distinguished from all other members of the genus Vietnamophryne by (1) body size males (n=4) 14.12-14.91 mm; females (n=9) 15.15-17.33 mm; (2) dorsal skin shagreened with small flat pustules loosely scattered on back in males, mostly smooth, slightly shagreened posteriorly, lacking enlarged tubercles in females; (3) belly color ivory-lemon to lemon-yellow with weak dark-brown marbling in males, bright lemon-yellow with weak dark-brown marbling in females; (4) tympanum relatively faint, comparatively small, rounded, 5.4-6.0% of SVL in males, 4.8-6.2% of SVL in females; (5) ratio snout length to eye length 119-128% in males, 100-130 % in females; (6) ratio head width to head length 117-124% in males, 110-131% in females; and (7) ratio first finger to second finger 43-49% in males, 44-50% in females. In the phylogenetic analysis the new species revealed to be sister to V. inexpectata, with 4.3-4.6% divergence in the 16SrRNA gene. So far, the new species is only known from the evergreen tropical forests of Vu Quang National Park at an elevation of 966 m a.s.l. This is the third species of Vietnamophryne reported from Vietnam.
KEYWORDS: Vietnamophryne vuquangensis sp. nov., MtDNA phylogeny, new species, taxonomy, Vietnam
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| Fig. 1. Map showing the type locality of Vietnamophryne vuquangensis sp. nov. (red circle) in Vu Quang NP, Ha Tinh Province, Vietnam. |
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| Fig. 3. Holotype (VNMN 010489, male) of Vietnamophryne vuquangensis sp. nov. in life: dorsolateral view (A) and ventral view (B). |
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| Fig. 5. Paratypes of Vietnamophryne vuquangensis sp. nov. (A) VNMN 010487, (B) VNMN 010491, (C) VNMN 010519, (D) VNMN 010518, (E) VNMN 010490, (F) VNMN 010521. |
Vietnamophryne vuquangensis sp. nov.
Diagnosis: (1) Body size small SVL (n=4 males, 14.12-14.91 mm; n=9 female, 15.15-17.33 mm); (2) body habitus stout FLL/SVL and HLL/SVL ratios 52-55% and 149-157% in males; 50-58% and 136-158% in females, respectively; (3) Head length greater than width, HW/HL ratio 117-124% in males, 110-131% in females; (4) snout comparatively long, rounded in dorsal view, snout length greater than eye length (SL/EL ratio 119-128% in males; 103-130% in females); (5) eye medium-sized, eye length/snout-vent length ratio 11% in males; 10-12% in females; eye to nostril distance 6-7% of SVL; (6) tympanum relatively blurred in males, comparatively small, rounded, TYD/SVL ratio 5.4-6.0% in males, 4.8-6.2% in females; (7) first finger (F1) well developed, less than half of second finger (F2) (1FLO/2FLO ratio 43-49% in male, 44-50% in females), relative finger lengths: I<IV<II<III, relative toe lengths: I<II<V<III<IV; (8) tips of all digits rounded, not expanded in F1-F4, T1, T2, and T5, weakly expanded in T3 and T4; (9) subarticular tubercles under fingers and toes weak, indistinct; (10) outer metatarsal tubercle absent, inner metatarsal tubercle small, flattened (3-5% of SVL); (11) skin of ventral surface completely smooth, dorsal skin shagreened with small flat pustules loosely scattered on dorsum in males, dorsal skin mostly smooth, slightly shagreened posteriorly, lacking enlarged tubercles in females; (12) belly color ivory-lemon to lemon-yellow with weak dark-brown marbling in males, bright lemon-yellow with weak dark-brown marbling in female.
Etymology: The specific epithet is in reference to the type locality (Vu Quang National Park). We recommend “Vu Quang Dwarf Frog” as the common English name of the new species and the common name in Vietnamese as “Nhái lùn vũ quang”.
Distribution and ecology: Vietnamophryne vuquangensis sp. nov. is currently known only from the type locality, Vu Quang NP, Vu Quang District, Ha Tinh Province. Specimens of the new species were found on the soil or under large tree-trunks and under leaf litter in evergreen tropical forests of Vu Quang NP at an elevation of 966 m a.s.l. (Fig. 6). The air temperature at the time of the finding was not recorded, but was 27°C at 19:40h. Other species of amphibians were found at night in the same habitat comprising Microhyla mukhlesuri Boulenger, 1884, M. cf. heymonsi Vogt, 1911, Leptobrachium cf. chapaensis (Bourret, 1937) and Polypedates mutus (Smith, 1940).
Van Chung Hoang, Jianping Jiang, Quoc Huy Nguyen, Nikolai Orlov, Van Manh Le, Viet Hung Nguyen, Vinh Thanh Nguyen, Tao Thien Nguyen and Thomas Ziegler. 2021. A New Species of Vietnamophryne from Vietnam. Revue suisse de Zoologie. 128(1); 207-219. DOI: 10.35929/RSZ.0046
