Integrative taxonomy reveals two new species of karst-dwelling Hemiphyllodactylus Bleeker, 1860 (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from the border region of Laos and Vietnam

Luu VQ 1 , Hoang TT 2 , Ha HB 3 , Grismer JL 4 , Murdoch M 5 , Sitthivong S 6 Show all authors , Phimpasone V 7 , Grismer LL 8

Affiliations 

  • 1 Faculty of Forest Resources and Environmental Management; Vietnam National University of Forestry; Xuan Mai; Chuong My; Hanoi; Vietnam. vinhlq@vnuf.edu.vn
  • 2 Faculty of Forest Resources and Environmental Management; Vietnam National University of Forestry; Xuan Mai; Chuong My; Hanoi; Vietnam. tuoiht@vnuf.edu.vn
  • 3 College of Forestry Biotechnology; Vietnam National University of Forestry; Hanoi; Vietnam. honghb@vnuf.edu.vn
  • 4 Herpetology Laboratory; Department of Biology; La Sierra University; 4500 Riverwalk Parkway; Riverside; California 92505; USA. jgrismer@lasierra.edu
  • 5 Herpetology Laboratory; Department of Biology; La Sierra University; 4500 Riverwalk Parkway; Riverside; California 92505; USA. hewmurdoch@gmail.com
  • 6 Faculty of Forestry; National University of Laos; Dong Dok Campus; Vientiane; Lao PDR. s.sitthivong@nuol.edu.la
  • 7 Faculty of Forestry; National University of Laos; Dong Dok Campus; Vientiane; Lao PDR. v.phimpasone@nuol.edu.la
  • 8 Herpetology Laboratory; Department of Biology; La Sierra University; 4500 Riverwalk Parkway; Riverside; California 92505; USA; Department of Herpetology; San Diego Natural History Museum; PO Box 121390; San Diego; California; 92112; USA; Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation; Universiti Malaysia Sabah; Jalan UMS; 88400; Kota Kinabalu; Sabah; Malaysia. lgrismer@lasierra.edu
Zootaxa, 2024 Jul 24;5486(1):71-108.
PMID: 39646841 DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5486.1.3

Abstract

An integrative taxonomic analysis of the gekkonid lizard genus Hemiphyllodactylus was conducted using molecular, morphological, color pattern, and ecological data on a clade of 19 species, including two new species from karst landscapes in northern Laos and Vietnam. Hemiphyllodactylus houaphanensis sp. nov. (Laos) and H. vanhoensis sp. nov. (Vietnam) are karst-dwelling species whose discovery further emphasizes the unrealized herpetological diversity and site-specific endemism in karst ecosystems across Southeast Asia and the need for increased field work to protect these biodiverse landscapes.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

MeSH terms
Similar publications