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Issue: Vol. 3410 No. 1: 6 Aug. 2012
Type: Articles
Published: 2012-08-06
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3410.1.2
Page range: 19–34
Abstract views: 55
PDF downloaded: 1

A new species of Raorchestes (Amphibia: Anura: Rhacophoridae) from mid-elevation evergreen forests of the southern Western Ghats, India

Suri Sehgal Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Royal Enclave, Srirampura, Jakkur post, Bangalore 560 064, India
Centre for infrastructure, Sustainable Transportation and Urban Planning (CiSTUP), Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560 012, India Gubbi Labs, #2-182, II cross extension, Gubbi 572 216, Karnataka, India
Suri Sehgal Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Royal Enclave, Srirampura, Jakkur post, Bangalore 560 064, India
Amphibia Shrub frogs Agastyamalai Taxonomy Acoustics Western Ghats

Abstract

A new species of the shrub frog genus Raorchestes Biju, Souche, Dubois, Dutta and Bossuyt is described as Raorchesteskakachi sp. nov. from Agastyamalai hill region in the southern Western Ghats, India. The small sized Raorchestes (male:24.7–25.8 mm, n = 3 and female: 24.3–34.1 mm, n = 3) is distinguished from all other known congeners by the followingsuite of characters. Snout oval in dorsal view; tympanum indistinct; head wider than long; moderate webbing in feet;colour on dorsum varying from ivory to brown, blotches of dark brown on flanks, brown mottling on throat reducing to-wards vent; inner and outer surface of thigh, inner surface of shank and inner surface of tarsus with a distinct dark brownhorizontal band which extends upto first three toes on upper surface. A detailed description, advertisement call features, ecology, natural history notes and comparison with closely related species are provided for the new species.

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