Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
Responsive image
Issue: Vol. 5506 No. 4: 10 Sept. 2024
Type: Article
Published: 2024-09-10
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5506.4.3
Page range: 533-547
Abstract views: 2252
PDF downloaded: 37

A new miniaturized species of leaf chameleon, genus Brookesia, from a littoral forest fragment in eastern Madagascar

Mention Environnement; Universite de l’Itasy; Faliarivo Ambohidanerana; 118 Soavinandriana Itasy; Madagascar
School for International Training; VN 41A Bis Ankazolava Ambohitsoa; Antananarivo; 101 Madagascar
Zoologische Staatssammlung München (ZSM-SNSB); Münchhausenstr. 21; 81247 München; Germany
Zoologisches Institut; Technische Universität Braunschweig; Mendelssohnstr. 4; 38106 Braunschweig; Germany
Reptilia Squamata Chamaeleonidae Brookesia nofy sp. nov. Ankanin’ny Nofy

Abstract

The number of species of miniaturized chameleons of the genus Brookesia, subgenus Evoluticauda, known to science has witnessed a dramatic increase over the past 15 years, due to the discovery of multiple microendemic species of very strong genetic divergence. So far, no described Evoluticauda species are known from the littoral forest of Madagascar’s east coast, one of the most threatened habitat types of the island. Here, we report on the discovery of a new species of Evoluticauda occurring in the littoral forest at Ankanin’ny Nofy, a touristic site at about sea level and close to Vohibola forest where probably the same species occurs. The new species, Brookesia nofy sp. nov., is sister to B. ramanantsoai which occurs in mid-altitude and highland forests (800–1300 m a.s.l.) at a similar latitude of eastern Madagascar, but differs from this species by an enormous genetic divergence in both mitochondrial and nuclear genes (8.1–9.4% uncorrected pairwise distance in the 16S rRNA gene, 1.8–2.5% in c-mos), a relatively shorter tail, a different arrangement of cephalic ridges, and probably smaller body size and relatively larger head. The discovery of B. nofy sp. nov. emphasizes the importance of conserving Madagascar’s last remaining fragments of littoral forest.

 

References

  1. Avise, J.C. & Ball, R.M. (1990) Principles of genealogical concordance in species concepts and biological taxonomy. In: Futuyma, D. & Antonovics, J. (Eds.), Oxford Surveys in Evolutionary Biology. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 45–67.
  2. Böhme, W. (1974) Ein seltenes Zwergchamäleon aus Madagaskar. Salamandra, 10 (2), 80–82.
  3. Boumans, L., Vieites, D.R., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2007) Geographical patterns of deep mitochondrial differentiation in widespread Malagasy reptiles. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 45, 822–839. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2007.05.028
  4. Brown, J.L., Sillero, N., Glaw, F., Bora, P., Vieites, D.R. & Vences, M. (2016) Spatial biodiversity patterns of Madagascar’s amphibians and reptiles. PLoS One, 11, e0144076. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0144076
  5. Brygoo, É.R. (1978) Reptiles sauriens Chamaeleonidae genre Brookesia et complément pour le genre Chamaeleo. Faune de Madagascar, 47, 1–173.
  6. Brygoo, E.R., Blanc, C.P. & Domergue, C.A. (1970) Notes sur les Brookesia de Madagascar. III. Brookesia karchei n. sp. du Massif du Marojezy. Annales Université Madagascar (Sciences), 7, 267–271.
  7. Brygoo, É.R. & Domergue, C.A. (1975) Notes sur les Brookesia de Madagascar. IX. Observations sur B. tuberculata Mocquard, 1894, B. ramanantsoai sp. nov. et B. peyrierasi nom. nov. Bulletin du Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris, 267 (189), 1769–1782.
  8. Cadotte, M., Rakotonasolo, F., Ludovic, R. & Lovett-Doust, J. (2002) Tree and shrub diversity and abundance in fragmented littoral forest of southeastern Madagascar. Biodiversity and Conservation, 11, 1417–1436. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1016282023542
  9. Consiglio, T., Schatz, G.E., McPherson, G., Lowry, P.P., Rabenantoandro, J., Rogers, Z.S., Rabevohitra, R. & Rabehevitra, D. (2006) Deforestation and plant diversity of Madagascar’s littoral forests. Conservation Biology, 20 (6), 1799–1803. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1523-1739.2006.00562.x
  10. Gehring, P.S., Ratsoavina, F.M. & Vences, M. (2010) Filling the gaps—amphibian and reptile records from lowland rainforests in eastern Madagascar. Salamandra, 46, 214–234.
  11. Gehring, P.S., Ratsoavina, F.M., Vences, M. & Glaw, F. (2011) Calumma vohibola, a new chameleon species (Squamata: Chamaeleonidae) from the littoral forests of eastern Madagascar. African Journal of Herpetology, 60, 130–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2011.628412
  12. Glaw, F. (2015) Taxonomic checklist of chameleons (Squamata: Chamaeleonidae). Vertebrate Zoology, 65 (2), 167–246. https://doi.org/10.3897/vz.65.e31518
  13. Glaw, F., Köhler, J., Hawlitschek, O., Ratsoavina, F.M., Rakotoarison, A., Scherz, M.D. & Vences, M. (2021) Extreme miniaturization of a new amniote vertebrate and insights into the evolution of genital size in chameleons. Scientific Reports, 11, 2522. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-80955-1
  14. Glaw, F., Köhler, J., Townsend, T.M. & Vences, M. (2012) Rivaling the world’s smallest reptiles: discovery of miniaturized and microendemic new species of leaf chameleons (Brookesia) from northern Madagascar. PLoS One, 7 (2), e31314. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0031314
  15. Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (1994) A Fieldguide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Madagascar. 2nd Edition. Vences & Glaw Verlag, Cologne, 478 pp.
  16. Glaw, F., Vences, M., Ziegler, T., Böhme, W. & Köhler, J. (1999) Specific distinctness and biogeography of the dwarf chameleons Brookesia minima, B. peyrierasi and B. tuberculata (Reptilia: Chamaeleonidae): evidence from hemipenial and external morphology. Journal of Zoology, 247, 225–238. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1999.tb00986.x
  17. Goodman, S.M., Raherilalao, M.J. & Wohlhauser, S. (Eds.) (2018) Les aires protégées terrestres de Madagascar: Leur histoire, description et biote/The terrestrial protected areas of Madagascar: Their history, description, and biota. Association Vahatra, Antananarivo, 1716 pp.
  18. Han, D., Zhou, K. & Bauer, A.M. (2004) Phylogenetic relationships among gekkotan lizards inferred from C-mos nuclear DNA sequences and a new classification of the Gekkota. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 83, 353–368. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8312.2004.00393.x
  19. Hyde-Roberts, S. (2023) An appraisal of biodiversity conservation in the littoral zone of Sainte Luce, southeastern Madagascar. Malagasy Nature, 18, 1–25.
  20. Ingram, J.C. & Dawson, T.P. (2006) Forest cover, condition, and ecology in human-impacted forests, south-eastern Madagascar. Conservation and Society, 4, 194–230.
  21. Katoh, K. & Standley, D.M. (2013) MAFFT multiple sequence alignment software version 7: improvements in performance and usability. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 30, 772–780. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/mst010
  22. Kremen, C., Cameron, A., Moilanen, A., Phillips, S., Thomas, C.D., Beentje, H., Dransfield, J., Fisher, B.L., Glaw, F., Good, T.C., Harper, G.J., Hijmans, R.J., Lees, D.C., Louis Jr. E., Nussbaum, R.A., Raxworthy, C.J., Razafimpahanana, A., Schatz, G.E., Vences, M., Vieites, D.R., Wright, P.C. & Zjhra, M.L. (2008) Aligning conservation priorities across taxa in Madagascar, with high-resolution planning tools. Science, 320, 222–226. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1155193
  23. Kumar, S., Stecher, G. & Tamura, K. (2016) MEGA7: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis version 7.0 for bigger datasets. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 33 (7), 1870–1874. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msw054
  24. Lehtinen, R.M., Ramanamanjato, J.-B. & Raveloarison, J.G. (2003) Edge effects and extinction proneness in a herpetofauna from Madagascar. Biodiversity and Conservation, 12, 1357–1370. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1023673301850
  25. Lehtinen, R.M. & Ramanamanjato, J.-B. (2006) Effects of rainforest fragmentation and correlates of local extinction in a herpetofauna from Madagascar. Applied Herpetology, 3, 95–110. https://doi.org/10.1163/157075406776984248
  26. Macey, J.R., Larson, A., Ananjeva, N.B., Fang, Z. & Papenfuss, T.J. (1997) Two novel gene orders and the role of light-strand replication in rearrangement of the vertebrate mitochondrial genome. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 14 (1), 91–104. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.molbev.a025706
  27. Macey, J.R., Schulte, J.A., Larson, A., Ananjeva, N.B., Wang, Y., Pethiyagoda, R., Rastegar-Pouyani, N. & Papenfuss, T.J. (2000) Evaluating trans-tethys migration: an example using acrodont lizard phylogenetics. Systematic Biology, 49, 233–256. https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/49.2.233
  28. Moat, J. & Smith, P. (2007) Atlas of the Vegetation of Madagascar. Kew Publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 124 pp. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8748.2008.00642_3.x
  29. Palumbi, S.R., Martin, A., Romano, S., McMillan, W.O., Stice, L. & Grabowski, G. (1991) The Simple Fool’s Guide to PCR, Version 2.0. Privately published, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, 45 pp.
  30. Penny, S.G., Crottini, A., Andreone, F., Bellati, A., Rakotozafy, L.M.S., Holderied, M.W., Schwitzer, C. & Rosa, G.M. (2017) Combining old and new evidence to increase the known biodiversity value of the Sahamalaza Peninsula, Northwest Madagascar. Contributions to Zoology, 86, 273–296. https://doi.org/10.1163/18759866-08604002
  31. Rabevohitra, R., Wilmé, L., Lowry II, P.P. & Schatz, G.E. (1998) La diversite floristique et l’importance de la conservation des forets littorales de la cote est. In: Ratsirarson, J. & Goodman, S.M. (Eds.), Inventaire biologique la Forêt Littorale de Tampolo. Vol. 14. Centre d’Information et de Documentation Scientifique et Technique, Antananarivo, pp. 65–99.
  32. Ramanamanjato, J.B. (2000) Fragmentation effects on reptile and amphibian diversity in the littoral forest of southeastern Madagascar. In: Rheinwald, G. (Ed.), Isolated Vertebrate Communities in the Tropics. Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium of Zoologisches Forschungsinstitut und Museum A. Koenig, Bonn, 13–17 May 1999. Bonn, pp. 297–308.
  33. Raxworthy, C.J. & Nussbaum, R.A. (1995) Systematics, speciation and biogeography of the dwarf chameleons (Brookesia; Reptilia, Squamata, Chamaeleontidae) of northern Madagascar. Journal of Zoology, 235, 525–558. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1995.tb01767.x
  34. Scherz, M.D., Köhler, J., Rakotoarison, A., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2019) A new dwarf chameleon, genus Brookesia, from the Marojejy massif in northern Madagascar. Zoosystematics and Evolution, 95, 95–106. https://doi.org/10.3897/zse.95.32818
  35. Schimmenti, G. & Jesu, R. (1996) Brookesia exarmata sp. nov. (Reptilia, Chamaeleonidae): a new dwarf chameleon from the limestone outcrops of western Madagascar. Italian Journal of Zoology, 63 (2), 193–197. https://doi.org/10.1080/11250009609356129
  36. Schönecker, P., Bach, S. & Glaw, F. (2004) Eine neue Taggecko-Art der Gattung Phelsuma aus Ost-Madagaskar (Reptilia: Squamata: Gekkonidae). Salamandra, 40 (2), 105–112.
  37. Schucht, P.J., Rühr, P.T., Geier, B., Glaw, F. & Lambertz, M. (2020) Armored with skin and bone: A combined histological and µCT study of the exceptional integument of the Antsingy leaf chameleon Brookesia perarmata (Angel, 1933). Journal of Morphology, 281, 754–764. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmor.21135
  38. Tolley, K.A., Townsend, T.M. & Vences, M. (2013) Large-scale phylogeny of chameleons suggests African origins and Eocene diversification. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 280 (1759), 20130184. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2013.0184
  39. Townsend, T.M., Tolley, K.A., Glaw, F., Böhme, W. & Vences, M. (2011) Eastward from Africa: palaeocurrent-mediated chameleon dispersal to the Seychelles islands. Biology Letters, 7, 225–228. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2010.0701
  40. Townsend, T.M., Vieites, D.R., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2009) Testing species-level diversification hypotheses in Madagascar: the case of microendemic Brookesia leaf chameleons. Systematic Biology, 58, 461–656. https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/syp073
  41. Vences, M., Köhler, J., Pabijan, M. & Glaw, F. (2010) Two syntopic and microendemic new frogs of the genus Blommersia from the east coast of Madagascar. African Journal of Herpetology, 59 (2), 133–156. https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2010.512961
  42. Vences, M., Miralles, A., Brouillet, S., Ducasse, J., Fedosov, A., Kharchev, V., Kostadinov, I., Kumari, S., Patmanidis, S., Scherz, M.D., Puillandre, N. & Renner, S.S. (2021) iTaxoTools 0.1: Kickstarting a specimen-based software toolkit for taxonomists. Megataxa, 6 (2), 77–92. https://doi.org/10.11646/megataxa.6.2.1
  43. Vences, M., Multzsch, M., Gippner, S., Miralles, A., Crottini, A. Gehring, P.S., Rakotoarison, A., Ratsoavina, F.M., Glaw, F. & Scherz, M.D. (2022a) Integrative revision of the Lygodactylus madagascariensis group reveals an unexpected diversity of little brown geckos in Madagascar’s rainforest. Zootaxa, 5179 (1), 1–61. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5179.1.1
  44. Vences, M., Patmanidis, S., Kharchev, V. & Renner, S.S. (2022b) Concatenator, a user-friendly program to concatenate DNA sequences, implementing graphical user interfaces for MAFFT and FastTree. Bioinformatics Advances, 2, vbac050. https://doi.org/10.1093/bioadv/vbac050
  45. Villeneuve, A.R. (2017) Habitat selection and population density of the world’s smallest chameleon, Brookesia micra, on Nosy Hara, Madagascar. Herpetological Conservation and Biology, 12 (2), 334–341.
  46. Vyawahare, M. (2019) A Malagasy community races the timber mafia to save its forest. Mongabay Series: Conservation in Madagascar. Available from: https://news.mongabay.com/2019/05/a-malagasy-community-races-the-timber-mafia-to-save-its-forest/ (accessed 2 July 2024)
  47. Wollenberg, K.C., Jenkins, R.K.B., Randrianavelona, R., Rampilamanana, R., Ralisata, M., Ramanandraibe, A., Ramilijaona Ravoahangimalala, O. & Vences, M. (2011) On the shoulders of lemurs: pinpointing the ecotouristic potential of Madagascar’s unique herpetofauna. Journal of Ecotourism, 10, 101–117. https://doi.org/10.1080/14724049.2010.511229