Nidirana shyhhuangi Lin, Chang, Matsui, Shen, Tominaga & Lin, 2025, sp. nov.
Year: 2025
Type: other
Abstract: Nidirana shyhhuangi sp. nov. Figs 7, 8, 9 Chresonymy. Rana psaltes — Chou 1994; Lue et al. 1999: 80–81; Pan 2000: 114–115; Lue et al. 2002: 80–81; Yang 2002: 50–51; Chen 2003: 46–47; Chen 2006: 48–49. Rana okinavana — Matsui 2007; Yang et al. 2008: 68–69; Shang et al. 2009: 96–97; Yang 2009: 300–303. Hylarana (Nidirana) psaltes — Fei et al. 2010: 310. Nidirana psaltes — Fei et al. 2012: 349. Nidirana okinavana — Yang and Lee 2019: 92–95. Type material. Holotype. NTNUB 149805 (Fig. 8), preserved in National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan. Adult male in a good state of preservation, collected by Shyh-Huang Chen on 11 July 1984 from Lienhuachih (23.92082 ° N, 120.88585 ° E), Yuchi Township, Nantou County, Taiwan. The environment of the type locality (Fig. 10 A), at an elevation of ~ 670 m a. s. l., is characterized by small freshwater wetland areas surrounded by patchy bamboo forests and subtropical Ficus - Machilus hardwood forests, featuring a humid microhabitat in the understory. Paratypes (n = 8). NTNUB 149801 ♀, 149802 ♂, 148803 ♂, 149804 ♀, 149806 ♂ collected on 11 July 1984; and NTNUB E 861 ♂, E 862 ♂, E 863 ♀ collected on 11 October 1986. All the above-mentioned specimens, in a good state of preservation, were collected from Lienhuachih by Shyh-Huang Chen and preserved in National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan (Table 2). Other material examined (n = 10). NTNUB 166201 ♂, 166202 ♂, 166203 ♂, 166204 ♂, 166205 ♀ collected on 28 August 1989 by Shyh-Huang Chen; NMNS 2377-3588 ♂, 2377-3589 ♂, 2377-3590 ♂ collected on 19 August 1993 by Wen-Hao Chou; NMNS LW-W-01 ♂ and an unnumbered specimen (♂) collected by Wen-Hao Chou with the collection date unknown. All of the above specimens were collected from Lienhuachih (Table 2). Etymology. The specific epithet of the new species shyhhuangi is a Latinized patronymic noun in genitive case. It is dedicated to Prof. Shyh-Huang Chen, a herpetologist and arachnologist who first discovered this species in the early 1980 s. We propose the common name “ Yuchi music frog ” in English to demonstrate the only two sampling sites of the species in Yuchi (meaning the “ fish pond ”) Township, or “ 魚池琴蛙 ” (pronounced as Yú-Chí-Qín-Wā) in Mandarin for this species. Diagnosis. Nidirana shyhhuangi sp. nov. is characterized by a combination of the following characters: (1) a small-sized ranid, body moderately slender; (2) SVL of preserved specimens in adult males 31.6–36.5 mm (mean ± SD = 33.8 ± 1.2 mm, n = 15), females 33.7–38.3 mm (35.9 ± 1.9 mm, n = 4); (3) head triangular, slightly longer than wide; (4) snout comparatively long, triangular in dorsal view with a slightly obtuse tip, moderately pointed in profile; (5) canthus rostralis distinct, contacting with the upper margin of nostril; (6) loreal region dark brown, extending posteriorly over eye and beyond tympanum; (7) upper lip pale white, white line extending posteriorly, forming a white stripe from below nostril to base of forelimb; (8) iris golden above canthus rostralis, dark brown below; (9) tympanum dark brown and conspicuous, dark zone extending posteriorly forming a trapezoid shape; (10) males with a single subgular vocal sac; (11) dorsum brown or yellowish-brown, sometimes gray; distinct vertebral stripe present; spinules on dorsal skin absent; (12) dorsolateral fold prominent, forming a distinct color boundary between dorsum and lateral body; (13) upper half of lateral body dark brown, lower half light brown; (14) jaw, throat, chest, and abdomen uniformly pale creamy yellow, generally lacking spots or patterns; (15) forelimb moderately long, pale brown; upper arm usually with one dark band at the base, forearm with one thin transverse band at the middle; (16) fingers slender, relative finger lengths II <IV <I <III; tips weakly dilated into discs, lateroventral groove absent on all fingers; free of webbing; (17) hindlimb relatively long, brown in color; thigh with two or three transverse dark bands, shank with two; (18) toes long and thin, relative toe lengths I <II <V <III <IV; tips weakly dilated into discs, lateroventral groove present on all toes; webbing partial, webbing formula I 1–1 II 1–1 III 2–2 IV 2–2 V. Description of holotype. Adult male in a good state of preservation (Fig. 8). Measurements of the holotype (left / right, all in mm): SVL 33.0; SFL 14.9 / 14.2; AGL 14.0 / 13.1; DW 9.1; UaL 8.9 / 8.5, LaL 7.2 / 7.8, HdL 7.9 / 8.1, leading to FLL 23.9 / 24.4; ThL 16.1 / 16.5, ShL 17.8 / 17.9, FtL 24.8 / 25.2, leading to HLL 58.7 / 59.5; HL 12.1 / 12.3; HW 11.2; SNT 6.2 / 6.1; ED 3.4 / 3.7; SND 2.9 / 2.9; STD 9.8 / 9.9; TD 2.9 / 2.8; IND 3.9; IOD 3.3. Body moderately slender and elongated. Head triangular, as wide as body; slightly longer (HL / HW = 110.0 %). Snout comparatively long (50.3 % HL), triangular and slightly obtuse in dorsal view, moderately pointed in profile. Canthus rostralis distinct; loreal region flat; nostril round, lateral, upper margin in contact with canthus rostralis, closer to tip of snout (23.7 % HL) than to eye (50.3 % HL). Eye moderate sized, diameter 28.9 % of HL, slightly larger than eye-nostril distance (26.3 % HL); interorbital space flat, width 26.9 % of HL and 29.5 % of HW. Tympanum readily visible, rounded; diameter 23.3 % HL and 80.7 % of eye diameter; tympanic annulus conspicuous. Supratympanic fold absent. Forelimb moderately long; UaL 26.3 % SVL; LaL 22.7 % SVL, HdL 24.1 % SVL. Fingers slender, free of webbing, rounded in cross-section, no skin fringes on fingers. First finger well-developed, tip of all fingers slightly expended, width of finger tips ~ 110 % of the thinnest diameter of phalanx, lateroventral groove absent on all fingers. Relative finger lengths: II <IV <I <III; length of finger II (3.42) 69.2 % of finger III (4.94). Inner metatarsal tubercle prominent and outer metatarsal tubercle obscure; subarticular tubercles present, rounded. Hindlimb relatively long; FmL 49.4 % SVL, TbL 54.0 % SVL, FtL 75.6 % SVL. Toes long, thin, tips of toes slightly flattened, width of toe tips ~ 120 % of thinnest diameter of phalanx, lateroventral groove present on all toes. Relative toe lengths: I <II <V <III
Authors: Lin, Chun-Fu, Chang, Chunwen, Matsui, Masafumi, Shen, Chin-Chia, Tominaga, Atsushi, Lin, Si-Min
Language: English
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W6949558644
Cites:
Cited by:
Related to: