Morphological and molecular data warrant the description of a new species of the genus Scutiger (Anura, Megophryidae) from the Central Himalaya

By

Hofmann, Sylvia
Jablonski, Daniel, 1987-
Schmidt, Joachim

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2024

Original Publication

ZooKeys

Volume

1210

Pages

229--246

Subjects

Genetics , Himalaya , lazy toad , Montane forests , Morphology , taxonomy

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1210.127106

 

Abstract

Recent phylogenetic studies in Himalayan lazy toads of the genus Scutiger Theobald, 1868 revealed the presence of genetically deeply divergent lineages. The taxonomy of S. nepalensis sensu lato was re-assessed based on museum material considering molecular and morphological data. The results strongly support the recognition of a new species, S. kanjirobasp. nov. distributed along the Nepalese Kanjiroba massif. It is further shown that S. sikimmensis has an apparently much more restricted distribution range than previously thought. The frequent misidentification of Scutiger across large areas of the Himalaya-Tibet area highlights the significance of careful taxonomic evaluation of collection material and the need for the direct morphological comparison of closely related species when describing new species.