Morphological and molecular data reveal one new species of the genus Brachytarsophrys Tian & Hu, 1983 (Anura, Megophryidae) from Guizhou, China

By

Lyu, Jingcai
Zhou, Sheng-lun
Zhang, Ting-Bi
Fang, Yang
Ran, Si-yu
Dai, Liangliang
Jiang, Xuan-Kong
Long, Han-Wu
Yuan, Guo

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2026-1-5

Original Publication

Zoosystematics and evolution

Volume

102

Series / Issue

Issue: 1

Pages

71--85

Subjects

Brachytarsophrys , Guizhou Province , Mt. Foding National Nature Reserve , new species , Phylogeny , taxonomy

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia Pensoft

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zse.102.161437

 

Abstract

<br> We describe a new species of megophryid frog from Mt. Foding National Nature Reserve in Guizhou Province, China. The new species is morphologically distinguished from its congeners by a combination of the following characters: medium body size (SVL 88.1–93.2 mm in five adult males and 108.7–111.2 mm in two adult females); head wider than long; tympanum hidden; dorsal skin slightly rough with irregularly shaped dark blotches and stripes; chin, ventral surface of throat rough with brown, irregularly shaped dark markings, two large longitudinal black-brown stripes on lateral throat; ventral surface brown-black with small brown granular spots; occipital region slightly uplifted; upper eyelid with tubercles, one of which is prominent, bluntly conical horn; margin of tongue shallow notched behind; toes webbing formular: I (1½)-(2) II (1½)-(3) III (2½)-(4) IV (4)-(2) V, webbing extending as a wide fringe along either side of each toe; large single subgular vocal sac located laterally on floor of mouth in males; tadpoles with a transverse white stripe on ventral surface and two longitudinal white stripes along sides of the body. In addition, phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA and COI fragment confirms its distinct identity, which clusters the new species closest to<br> B. orientalis<br> , with uncorrected<br> p<br> -distances of COI at least 3.77%. At present, the new species is known only from small streams in Mt. Foding National Nature Reserve at about 740–1000 m elevation. Its natural history and conservation status is discussed.<br>