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| Hebius ngoclinhensis Le, Phan, T. L. Nguyen, Murphy, Lam, S. N. Nguyen & Che, 2026 |
Abstract
We describe a new keelback snake of the genus Hebius from the Ngoc Linh Mountain Range, Central Highlands, Vietnam, based on morphological characters and molecular evidence (Cytb). Hebius ngoclinhensis sp. nov. is diagnosed by the following combination of morphological features: dorsal scale rows 19-19-17; first dorsal scale row smooth; ventrals 143–148; subcaudals 95–97, paired; two preoculars; two or three postoculars; one loreal; eight or nine supralabials; ten infralabials; cloacal plate divided; maxillary teeth 24–26, gradually enlarged, with two distinctly enlarged teeth posteriorly; 17 keeled dorsal scale rows at midbody; dorsal surface of body and tail dark brown with numerous irregular dark yellow spots; a distinct reddish-brown dorsolateral stripe on the 4th–7th dorsal scale rows on each side; ventral surface of body and tail reddish-orange to orange; and lateral margins of ventrals and subcaudals dark brown. In addition, the new species differs from its congeners by an uncorrected p-distance in Cytb sequences of at least 9.3%.
Reptilia, Central highlands of Vietnam, Hebius ngoclinhensis sp. nov., keelback snakes, mitochondrial DNA, taxonomy
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| Holotype of Hebius ngoclinhensis sp. nov. (ILS h.20386) in life. A, whole body in dorsolateral view; B, whole body in ventral view; C–F, dorsal, ventral, and lateral views of head, respectively (scale bar 5 mm); G & H, sulcal and asulcal views of hemipenis, respectively. |
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| Paratypes of Hebius ngoclinhensis sp. nov. in life. ILS h.20756, adult female: A & B, dorsal and ventral views of whole body, respectively; C–F, dorsal, ventral, and lateral views of head, respectively. ILS h.20765, subadult male: G–H, dorsolateral and ventral views of whole body; I & K, dorsal and lateral views of head, respectively; L, sulcal view of hemipenis. Scale bars 5 mm. |
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| Distribution and habitat of Hebius ngoclinhensis sp. nov. A, sampling sites: 1–3, Dak Glei District, Kon Tum Province, Vietnam; 4, Tra My District, Quang Nam Province, Vietnam). B & C, macro- and microhabitat of the new species in the type locality, respectively |
MANH VAN LE, KHANH DUY PHAN, THANH LUAN NGUYEN, ROBERT W. MURPHY, NGON QUANG LAM, SANG NGOC NGUYEN and JING CHE. 2026. A New Snake of the Genus Hebius (Serpentes: Natricidae) from the Ngoc Linh Mountain Range, Vietnam. Zootaxa. 5748(4); 480-498. DOI: doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5748.4.2 [2026-01-15]
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