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| Leptobrachella huynhi Hoang, Luong, Nguyen, Nguyen, Ninh, Le, Ziegler & Pham, in Hoang, Luong, T. Q. Nguyen, T. T. Nguyen, Ninh, Le, Ziegler & Pham, 2024. |
Abstract
Background: The genus Leptobrachella (Anura, Megophryidae) was originally described, based on the type species from Sarawak (Malaysia), Leptobrachella mjöbergi Smith. The taxa in the group were previously classified into different genera, i.e, Paramegophrys Liu; Leptolalax Dubois; Lalax Delorme, Dubois, Grosjean & Ohler; and Lalos Dubois, Grosjean, Ohler, Adler & Zhao. However, Yuan et al. synonymised Leptolalax with Leptobrachella in 2017. Members of Leptobrachella inhabit the forest floor and rocky streams in hilly evergreen forests. They are widely distributed from southern China and Myanmar through mainland Indochina to Peninsular Malaysia and the island of Borneo. However, the species diversity of the genus was indicated to be underestimated by phylogenetic analyses and a series of new species have been discovered recently. In Vietnam, 34 species of Leptobrachella are currently known and 75% (or 24 species) have been described or newly recorded from the country since 2010.
New information: We describe a new species, Leptobrachella huynhi sp. nov., from Sin Ho District, Lai Chau Province. The new species is distinguished from its congeners by genetic divergences ranging from 3.62 to 18.51% (16S rRNA gene) and morphological differences: size medium (SVL 37.8–40.2 mm in adult females); head longer than wide; tympanum distinct; skin on entire dorsum shagreened; toes without webbing and with narrow lateral fringes; supratympanic ridge slightly rough with few nodules; dorsum grey-brown with indistinct dark brown markings; an interorbital region with a stacking double Y-shaped marking; centre of belly creamy-white, outer edges of belly brown with small whitish spots; iris copper. The new species is the 35th species of the genus Leptobrachella known from Vietnam.
Keywords: Leptobrachella huynhi sp. nov., Sin Ho, Hoang Lien Range, molecular phylogeny, taxonomy
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| Holotype of Leptobrachella huynhi sp. nov. (IEBR A.5213, female) in life. |
Leptobrachella huynhi Hoang, Luong, Nguyen, Nguyen, Ninh, Le, Ziegler & Pham, sp. nov.
Diagnosis: Leptobrachella huynhi sp. nov. is distinguished from its congeners by a combination of the following morphological characteristics: Size medium (SVL 37.8–40.2 mm, n = 4 adult females); head longer than wide; tympanum distinct; skin on entire dorsum shagreened; toes without interdigital webbing and with narrow lateral fringes; supratympanic ridge slightly rough with few nodules; dorsum grey-brown with indistinct dark brown markings; interorbital region with a stacking double Y-shaped marking; centre of belly creamy-white, outer edges of belly brown with small whitish spots; iris copper. In addition, the new species is genetically distinct from other species in the genus with uncorrected genetic distances ≥ 3.62% (mitochondrial gene 16S rRNA).
Etymology: The new species is named after Prof. Dr. Huynh Huy Dang, Chairman of the Zoological Society of Vietnam, to honour his great contributions to the vertebrate fauna of Vietnam. We recommend “Huynh’s Leaf-litter Frog” as the common English name and “Cóc mày huỳnh” as the Vietnamese name.
Chung Van Hoang, Anh Mai Luong, Truong Quang Nguyen, Tao Thien Nguyen, Hoa Thi Ninh, Linh Hoang Tu Le, Thomas Ziegler, Cuong The Pham. 2024. A New Species of Leptobrachella Smith 1925 (Anura, Megophryidae) from Lai Chau Province, Vietnam. Biodiversity Data Journal. 12: e136491. DOI: doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.12.e136491
