Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
Responsive image
Issue: Vol. 1595 No. 1: 26 Sep. 2007
Type: Article
Published: 2007-09-26
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.1595.1.3
Page range: 31–41
Abstract views: 90
PDF downloaded: 1

A new species of Nyctibatrachus Boulenger (Amphibia: Anura: Nyctibatrachidae) from the Eravikulam National Park, Kerala, India

Western Ghats Field Research Station (WGFRS), Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Calicut – 673 002, Kerala, India Zoological Survey of India, Western Ghats Field Research Station, Calicut – 673 002, Kerala, India
Western Ghats Field Research Station (WGFRS), Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Calicut – 673 002, Kerala, India
Zoological Survey of India, 27 JL Nehru Road, Kolkata, 700 016, India
Amphibia India new species Nyctibatrachus Shola Western Ghats

Abstract

A new species of Indian nyctibatrachid frog, Nyctibatrachus sholai (Amphibia: Anura), is described based on a series of 6 specimens from the Eravikulam National Park, southern Western Ghats of the State Kerala, India. The new species is compared with all known congeners. It is diagnosed by the following combination of characters: skin with glandular corrugations with metallic green coloration; head wider than long; snout not projecting beyond mouth; irregular longitudinal corrugations on the dorsum and extending up to the dorsal surface of arms and thighs; faint supratympanic fold; a fold from posterior corner of eye to angle of jaw clearly defined; tympanum partially visible; webbing on toes ¼ th , except that on 3 rd toe reaching penultimate subarticular tubercle; tips of digits and toes flattened to form minute disks with dorsal longitudinal grooves; femoral gland present. The largest specimen in the type series has a snout-vent length of 22.1 mm. A key to the species of Nyctibatrachus is provided.

References

  1. Bhaduri, J.L., & Kripalani, M.B. (1954) Nyctibatrachus humayuni, a new frog from the Western Ghats, Bombay. Journal of Bombay Natural History Society, 52, 851–857.

    Biju, S.D. (2001) A synopsis to the frog fauna of the Western Ghats, India. Occasional Publication of the Indian Society for Conservation Biology, Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute, Thiruvananthapuram, India. pp24

    Blommers-Schlosser, R.M.A. & Blanc, C.P. (1993) Amphibiens (deuxieme partie). Faune de Madagascar, 75, 385–530.

    Boulenger, G.A. (1882) Catalogue of the Batrachia Salientia s. Ecaudata in the Collection of the British Museum. 2nd ed. British Museum, London (reprinted 1966, Wheldon and Wesley, Codicote and Verlag J. Cramer, Weinham, Germany).

    Chanda, S.K. & I. Das. (1997) The systematic studies of Nyctibatrachus sanctipalustris modestus Rao, 1920 (Anura: Ranidae). Hamadryad, 22(1), 48–49.

    Daniels R.J.R. (1992) Geographical distribution patterns of amphibians in the Western Ghats, 303 India. Journal of Biogeography, 19, 521–529.

    Das, I. & Kunte, K. (2005) New species of Nyctibatrachus (Anura: Ranidae) from Castle Rock, Karnataka State, Southwest India. Journal of Herpetology. 39(3), 465–470.

    Dinesh, K.P., Radhakrishnan, C., Reddy, A.H.M. & Gururaja, K.V. (2007). Nyctibatrachus karnatakaensis nom. nov., a replacement name for the giant wrinkled frog from the Western Ghats. Current Science, 93 (2), 246–250.

    Dubois, A. (1984) Miscellaneanomenclatorica Batrachologica (VI). Alytes, 3(4), 160 – 162.

    Dubois, A. (1986) Miscellanea Taxnomica Batrachologica (I). Alytes, 5(1), 7–95.

    Dubois, A., Ohler, A and Biju, S.D. (2001) A new genus and species of Ranidae (Amphibia; Anura) from southwestern India. Alytes, 19, 53–79.

    Frost, D.R. (2006) Amphibian species of the world: an online reference. Version 4.0. New York: American Museum of Natural History. [Electronic database available at http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/index.html]. Accessed on 25th July 25, 2006.

    Frost, D.R., Grant, T., Faivovich, J., Bain, R.H., Haas, A., Hddad, C.F.B., Desa, R.O., Channing, A., Wilkinson, M., Donnellan, S.C., Raxworthy, C.J., Campbell, J.A., Blotto, B.L., Moler, P., Drewes, R.C., Nussbaum, R.A., Lynch, J.D., Green, D.M. & Wheeler, W.C. (2006) The amphibian tree of life. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 297, 370 pp.

    Grant, T., E.C. Humphrey & C.W. Myers. (1997) The median lingual process of frogs: a bizarre character of Old World ranoids discovered in South American dendrobatids. American Museum Novitates, 3212, 1–40.

    Inger, R.F., Shaffer, H.B., Koshy, M. & Bakde, R. (1984) A report on a collection of amphibians and reptiles from Ponmudi, Kerala, South India. Journal of Bombay Natural History Society, 81(2), 406–427.

    Krishnamurthy, S.V., Reddy, A.H.M. & Gururaja, K.V. (2001) A new species of frog in the genus Nyctibatrachus (Anura: Ranidae) from Western Ghats, India. Current Science, 80 (7), 887–891.

    Myers, N., Mittermeier, R.A., Mittermeier, C.G., Da Fonseca, G.A.B. & Kent, J. (2000) Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature, 403, 853–858.

    Pillai, R.S. (1978) On Nyctibatrachus major Boul. (Ranidae) with a description of its tadpole. Bulletin of the Zoological Survey of India 1, 135–140.

    Rao, C.R.N. (1920) Some south Indian batrachians. Journal of Bombay Natural History Society, 27 (1), 119–127.

    Rao, C.R.N. (1937) On some new forms of Batrachia from south India. Proceedings of Indian Academy of Sciences, 6(6), 387–427.

    Ravichandran, M.S. (1997) A new frog of the genus Nyctibatrachus (Anura: Ranidae) from Southern India. Hamadryad, 22(1), 9–12.