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| Dixonius minhlei Ziegler, Botov, Nguyen, Bauer, Brennan, Ngo & Nguyen, 2016 |
Abstract
Based on near-topotypic specimens of Dixonius vietnamensis from Khanh Hoa Province in southern Vietnam genetic analyses showed that the recently described D. taoi is sister to D. vietnamensis and several separate forms exist which previously have been misidentified as D. vietnamensis and D. siamensis. The Dixonius population from Vinh Cuu Nature Reserve, Dong Nai Province, Vietnam, represents an undescribed species. Dixonius minhlei sp. nov. can be distinguished from its congeners based on the following diagnostic characters: small size (up to 47.5 mm SVL); 7–9 supralabials; 14–15 rows of keeled tubercles on dorsum; 20–23 ventral scale rows; 7 or 8 precloacal pores in males; a canthal stripe running from rostrum through the eye and terminating at back of head; lateral second pair of postmentals maximum one quarter the size of first pair; dorsum olive gray with more or less discernible brownish olive blotches. This is the sixth species of Dixonius known to occur in Vietnam.
Keywords: Reptilia, Dixonius vietnamensis, Dixonius minhlei sp. nov., Vietnam, morphology, molecular phylogeny, taxonomy
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| Paratypes of Dixonius minhlei sp. nov. from Vinh Cuu, Dong Nai Province, in life: ZFMK 97745 (top), and VNMN R.2016.1 (bottom). Photos: T. T. Nguyen. |
Dixonius minhlei sp. nov.
Diagnosis. A small gecko with up to 47.5 mm SVL; 7–9 supralabials; 14–15 rows of keeled tubercles on dorsum; 20–23 ventral scale rows; 7 or 8 precloacal pores in males; a canthal stripe running from rostrum through the eye and terminating at back of head; lateral second pair of postmentals maximum one quarter the size of first pair; dorsum olive gray with more or less discernible brownish olive blotches.
Etymology. The new species is named after our friend and colleague Dr. Minh D. Le from the Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Hanoi University of Science, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, for his continuous and significant contributions towards a better understanding of the diversity and phylogenetic relationships of species from Vietnam and surrounding countries.
Distribution. Dixonius minhlei sp. nov. currently is only known from the type locality (Fig. 7).
Natural history. The type series of Dixonius minhlei sp. nov. was collected at night, between 19:00 and 23:00, on the ground of the evergreen forest (Fig. 8). Further reptile species observed at the type locality were Acanthosaura lepidogaster, Calotes emma, and Cyrtodactylus cattienensis.
Thomas Ziegler, Andreas Botov, Tao T. Nguyen, Aaron M. Bauer, Ian G. Brennan, Hanh T. Ngo & Truong Q. Nguyen. 2016. First Molecular Verification of Dixonius vietnamensis Das, 2004 (Squamata: Gekkonidae) with the Description of A New Species from Vinh Cuu Nature Reserve, Dong Nai Province, Vietnam. Zootaxa. 4136(3); 553–566. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4136.3.7
