Qi Shuo, Wang Jian, Grismer L Lee, Chen Hong-Hui, Lyu Zhi-Tong, Wang Ying-Yong
State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol/ The Museum of Biology, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510275, China.
Herpetology Laboratory, Department of Biology, La Sierra University, Riverside, California 92515, USA.
Zookeys. 2020 Nov 11;991:137-153. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.991.54935. eCollection 2020.
A new species of the genus is described based on three specimens collected from a limestone cave in Huaiji County, Guangdong Province, China. Based on molecular phylogenetic analyses, the new species is nested within the species group. However, morphological analyses cannot ascribe it to any known species of that group. It is distinguished from the other three species in the group by a combination of the following characters: scales around midbody 121-128; dorsal tubercle rows at midbody 16-17; presence of 10-11 precloacal pores in males, and absent in females; nuchal loop and body bands immaculate, without black spots; iris orange, gradually darker on both sides. The discovery of yet another limestone-adapted species of in Guangdong Province underscores a growing body of evidence for the high biodiversity of limestone habitats and brings into sharp focus the urgent need for their conservation.
基于从中国广东省怀集县一个石灰岩洞穴中采集的三个标本，描述了该属的一个新物种。基于分子系统发育分析，该新物种嵌套在该物种组内。然而，形态学分析无法将其归为该组的任何已知物种。它与该组中的其他三个物种的区别在于以下特征的组合：体中部鳞片121 - 128枚；体中部背侧瘤行16 - 17行；雄性有10 - 11个泄殖腔前孔，雌性无；颈部环纹和体带无瑕疵，无黑点；虹膜橙色，两侧逐渐变深。在广东省发现的另一种适应石灰岩环境的该属物种，突出了越来越多的证据表明石灰岩栖息地具有高生物多样性，并凸显了对其进行保护的迫切需求。
