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| Uropsilus fansipanensis Bui, Okabe, Le, Nguyen & Motokawa, 2023 |
Abstract
A new medium-sized shrew mole species of the genus Uropsilus from Mount Fansipan, Hoang Lien National Park, Lao Cai Province, northwestern Vietnam is described based on morphological and molecular differences. Uropsilus fansipanensis sp. nov. is distinguished from the other Uropsilus species by the combination of the following features: the dorsum is lightly reddish-brown and venter is dark gray; the dark gray tail is long and slender, with a scattered white base and short bristle hairs; orbital process is oriented upwards posteriorly; lacrimal foramen is well developed and much larger than infraorbital foramen; the lower first premolar is approximately the same size as the lower third premolar. Genetic distances in terms of mitochondrial cytochrome b from other Uropsilus species presented pairwise divergences from 8.63 to 20.70%. To date, the new species is known to exist only in the type locality of Mt. Fansipan, a wet and cold temperate climate area with an upper montane forest at an elevation of approximately 2900 m, forming the southernmost distribution of the genus Uropsilus.
Key words: Uropsilinae, taxonomy, Mt. Fansipan, Hoang Lien Son range
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| Lateral view of the body (A), lateral view (B), dorsal view (C), and ventral view (D) of the holotype (IEBR-M-8101) of Uropsilus fansipanensis sp. nov. |
Uropsilus fansipanensis sp. nov.
Diagnosis. Medium-sized shrew mole. Body bicolor, dorsum lightly reddish-brown and venter dark gray, but the separation between the dorsum and venter is not obvious. The tip of the fur on the back reddish-brown, and the rest is gray. The tail uniformly dark gray, long, slender, and covered with small scales arranged in rings; gradually darken from base to tip. Short bristle hairs sparsely covering the tail from the base to the tip, and longer at the tip of the tail. The mastoid process developed sideways and pointed out. The interorbital region broad and parallel. The zygomatic arch stouter. The foramen magnum very large. The lacrimal foramen well developed and much larger than the infraorbital foramen. The orbital process oriented upwards anteroposteriorly. Dental formula I 2/1, C 1/1, P 4/4, M 3/3 = 38 including teeth of I1, I2, C1, P1, P2, P3, P4, M1, M2, M3 / i2, c1, p1, p2, p3, p4, m1, m2, m3 in the dentition. The buccal view of the upper fourth premolar (P4) triangular shape. The lower third premolar (p3) large in size. The lower first and third premolars (p1 and p3, respectively) approximately the same size. The lower canine (c1) larger than p1.
Etymology. The specific epithet “fansipanensis” refers to the type locality of the new species, Mt. Fansipan. We suggest “Fansipan Shrew Mole” and “Chuột chũi vòi phan-xi-pan” for the common names in English and Vietnamese, respectively.
Hai Tuan Bui, Shinya Okabe, Linh Tu Hoang Le, Ngan Thi Nguyen and Masaharu Motokawa. 2023. A New Shrew Mole Species of the Genus Uropsilus (Eulipotyphla: Talpidae) from northwestern Vietnam. Zootaxa. 5339(1); 59-78. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5339.1.3
