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Issue: Vol. 5474 No. 1: 25 Jun. 2024
Type: Article
Published: 2024-06-25
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5474.1.1
Page range: 1-20
Abstract views: 185
PDF downloaded: 5

A new species in the Cyrtodactylus intermedius (Squamata: Gekkonidae) group from an isolated limestone karst formation in southwestern Cambodia

Ministry of Environment; Morodok Techo Building (Lot 503); Tonle Bassac; Chamkarmorn; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Wild Earth Allies; 77a; Street Beton; Bayap Village; Sangkat Phnom Penh Thmei; Khan Sen Sok; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Ministry of Environment; Morodok Techo Building (Lot 503); Tonle Bassac; Chamkarmorn; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Ministry of Environment; Morodok Techo Building (Lot 503); Tonle Bassac; Chamkarmorn; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Ministry of Environment; Morodok Techo Building (Lot 503); Tonle Bassac; Chamkarmorn; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Ministry of Environment; Morodok Techo Building (Lot 503); Tonle Bassac; Chamkarmorn; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Wild Earth Allies; 77a; Street Beton; Bayap Village; Sangkat Phnom Penh Thmei; Khan Sen Sok; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Graduate School; National University of Cheasim Kamchaymear; No. 157; Preah Norodom Blvd; Khan Chamkarmorn; Phnom Penh 12300; Cambodia
Fauna & Flora International; Cambodia Program; # 19; St. 360; Sangkat BKKI; Chamkarmorn; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Centre for Biodiversity Conservation; Room 415; Faculty of Science; Royal University of Phnom Penh; Confederation of Russian Boulevard; Phnom Penh; Cambodia
Department of Environment; Kampot Province; St. 729. 1 Ousaphea village; Sangkat Kampongkandal; Krong Kampot; Kampot Province
North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences; 11 West Jones St; Raleigh; NC 27601 USA
Herpetology Laboratory; Department of Biology; La Sierra University; 4500 Riverwalk Parkway; Riverside; California 92505 USA; Department of Herpetology; San Diego Natural History Museum; P.O. Box 121390; San Diego; California 92112 USA; Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation; Universiti Malaysia Sabah; Jalan UMS; 88400; Kota Kinabalu; Sabah; Malaysia
Reptilia Karst site-specific endemism molecular systematics taxonomy Touk Meas Indochina

Abstract

The gekkonid lizard Cyrtodactylus intermedius was formerly considered to be a single widespread species in hilly areas across eastern Thailand through southern Vietnam but has recently been partitioned into a complex of 12 nominal species across its range. A population belonging to the C. intermedius group was recently found in an isolated limestone karst block in Kampot Province in southwestern Cambodia, part of which lies within the recently designated Phnom Preah Kuhear Loung Natural Heritage Site. Comparisons of morphometric, meristic, qualitative morphological and color pattern data, as well as a molecular analysis using the mitochondrial ND2 gene, revealed that this population differs from all other named members of the C. intermedius group, and so is described here as a new species. The karst-dwelling C. regicavernicolus sp. nov. was recovered as the sister species to C. laangensis, the most geographically proximate member of the complex and one that is also restricted to a small limestone karst habitat.

 

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