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Issue: Vol. 5686 No. 3: 28 Aug. 2025
Type: Article
Published: 2025-08-28
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5686.3.3
Page range: 373-392
Abstract views: 95
PDF downloaded: 7

Unexpected diversity of pricklenape agamas in Vietnam: Another new cryptic species of Acanthosaura Gray 1831 (Reptilia: Agamidae) from the Central Highlands

Institute of Biology; Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology; 18 Hoang Quoc Viet Road; Hanoi 10072; Vietnam.
Institute of Biology; Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology; 18 Hoang Quoc Viet Road; Hanoi 10072; Vietnam.; Graduate University of Science and Technology; Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology; 18 Hoang Quoc Viet Road; Hanoi 10072; Vietnam.
Institute of Biology; Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology; 18 Hoang Quoc Viet Road; Hanoi 10072; Vietnam.; Graduate University of Science and Technology; Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology; 18 Hoang Quoc Viet Road; Hanoi 10072; Vietnam.
Institute of Zoology; University of Cologne; Zülpicher Strasse 47b; 50674 Cologne; Germany.; Cologne Zoo; Riehler Straße 173; 50735 Cologne; Germany
Phu Yen University; 01 Nguyen Van Huyen; Tuy Hoa Ward; Dak Lak Province; Vietnam.
Institute of Biology; Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology; 18 Hoang Quoc Viet Road; Hanoi 10072; Vietnam.
Reptilia Acanthosaura grismeri sp. nov. Agamidae morphology phylogeny taxonomy COI Dak Lak Province

Abstract

Based on integrative taxonomic analyses, we describe a new species of Acanthosaura from Krong Bong forest, Dak Lak Province, the Central Highlands of Vietnam. Acanthosaura grismeri sp. nov. differs morphologically from its congeners by a combination of the following characteristics: size moderate (SVL 77.20-91.98 mm in males, 102.70-113.09 mm in females); the absence of diastema between short nuchal and dorsal crest spines; vertebral crest includes a single row of enlarged, keeled, pointed scales; color of dorsal surface green in males and light brown and green-yellow with scattered black spots in females; the absence of black eye patch; black or brown lines from canthus rostralis-supraciliary line downward to upper eye margin, and a white band from lower eye margin downward to lip edge. Phylogenetic analyses using maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference methods for the COI gene support the monophyly of Acanthosaura grismeri sp. nov. The uncorrected pairwise distance between the new species and its congeners ranges from 7.82% to 25.36%. With the description of this species, 22 species of Acanthosaura are recognized, half of them occurring in Vietnam.

 

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How to Cite

Le, L.T.H., Nguyen, T.T., Nguyen, T.Q., Ziegler, T., Do, D.T. & Ngo, H.N. (2025) Unexpected diversity of pricklenape agamas in Vietnam: Another new cryptic species of Acanthosaura Gray 1831 (Reptilia: Agamidae) from the Central Highlands. Zootaxa, 5686 (3), 373–392. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5686.3.3