Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei, Linkem, Charles W. & Brown, Rafe M., 2013

Linkem, Charles W. & Brown, Rafe M., 2013, Systematic revision of the Parvoscincus decipiens (Boulenger, 1894) complex of Philippine forest skinks (Squamata: Scincidae: Lygosominae) with descriptions of seven new species, Zootaxa 3700 (4), pp. 501-533 : 506-508

Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei sp. nov.

Figs. 2 ; 3A; 4D, E, F; 5C, D

Sphenomorphus decipiens: Brown & Alcala, 1980: 186 (part)

Parvoscincus decipiens sp. 1: Linkem, Diesmos, Brown, 2011

Parvoscincus cf decipiens : Brown, Siler, Oliveros, Welton, Rock, Swab, van Weerd, van Beijnen, Jose, Rodriguez, Jose, Diesmos, 2013

Holotype. PNM 9780 (formerly KU 330120; RMB Field No. 14729); Female; Philippines, Luzon Island, Cagayan Province, Municipality of Gonzaga, Barangay Magrafil, Mt. Cagua, elevation 783 m above sea level, coordinates N: 18.219º, E: 122.111º. Collected 9 July 2011 by RMB.

Paratypes. Philippines, Luzon Island, Cagayan Province, Municipality of Gonzaga, Barangay Magrafil, Mt. Cagua: KU 330126 (RMB 15016), KU 330122 (RMB 14817) Males; KU 330128 (RMB 15048) Female. Nueva Vizcaya Province, Municipality of Quezon, Barangay Maddiangat: KU 325796 (RMB 13514) Male. Bulacan Province, Municipality of Dona Remedios Trinidad, Barangay Kabayunan: KU 329401 (DSM 1804). Ilocos Norte Province, Municipality of Adams, Barangay Adams: KU 329935 (RMB 14394) Male; KU 329931 (RMB 14368), KU 329941 (RMB 14515), KU 329945 (RMB 14524), KU 329949 (RMB 14538) Females.

Referred Specimens. KU 323307, KU 323316–17, KU 323325–29, KU 323331–35, KU 325795, KU 326585–86, KU 326707–09, KU 326711–16, KU 327626, KU 328946, KU 329930, KU 329934, KU 329939, KU 329947, KU 329951, KU 330067–68, KU 330119, KU 330121, KU 330123–25, KU 330127, KU 330129–30.

Genetic Data. GenBank KF425344 – KF425371 .

Diagnosis. Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei sp. nov. can be identified by the following combination of characters: (1) A small body size (SVL at maturity 33–49 mm); (2) MBSR = 31–37; (3) PV = 58–73; (4) dorsal scales nonstriated with apical pits; (5) apical pits on scales of forelimbs and hind limbs; (6) four enlarged supraoculars; (7) anterior and posterior loreals undivided laterally; (8) three preoculars; (9) and 17–22 Toe IV SDL.

Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei sp. nov. is the sister species to the clade containing P. arvindiesmosi sp. nov., P. abstrusus sp. nov., P. agtorum sp. nov., and P. decipiens sensu stricto. ( Fig. 2 ).

Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei sp. nov. can be distinguished from P. arvindiesmosi sp. nov. by having a wide head ( IND /RostL> 0.50 vs. <0.50); a throat with dark brown mottling (vs. white throat without mottling); dorsolateral band bordered dorsally by large white flecks and not extending onto dorsum (vs. dorsolateral band extends dorsally towards midline becoming broken up dorsally); ventral edge of dorsolateral band flecked with white and becoming a mix of dark brown spots ventrally (vs. ventral edge of dorsolateral band with abrupt transition to lateral ground cream color, ventral edge of band broken up by irregular boxes of flank ground color).

Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei sp. nov. can be distinguished from P. abstrusus sp. nov. by the presence of apical pits on dorsal scales (vs. weak to absent apical pits on dorsal scales), by having a white throat with dark brown flecks (vs. a dark black throat in males or white throat without dark flecks in females), vertebral brown flecks darker, dark-brown dorsolateral band broad and bordered dorsally and ventrally by white flecks (vs. dorsolateral band thin, irregular, with small white flecks ventrally).

Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei sp. nov. is sympatric with P. decipiens sensu stricto and can be distinguished from this species by generally having more paravertebral scales (58–72 vs. 54–63); usually having more lamellae under the fourth toe (17–22 vs. 14–18); having dark mottling under the throat (vs. having a few light brown lines); having dark mottled labials, temporals, and nuchals (vs. cream labials and temporals); dorsolateral band broad and extending down length of body (vs. dorsolateral band broad anteriorly at posterior of eye and becoming a thin line of black bordered dorsally by tan posterior to forelimb).

Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei sp. nov. can be distinguished from sympatric P. a g t o r u m sp. nov. by the presence of dorsal apical pores (vs. absence); fewer midbody scale rows (31–37 vs. 39); a slightly smaller size (33.75–44.12 vs. 44.91 mm); three preoculars (vs. two preoculars); a white throat with dark brown flecks (vs. a cream colored throat with few flecks and brown collar).

Description of holotype. A small-sized Parvoscincus , SVL 45.0 mm, with clawed, pentadactyl limbs. Snout rounded in lateral profile with lower jaw slightly sunk; rostral wide forming an oval dorsal margin with the nasals and frontonasal scale; frontonasal wider than long, in contact with nasals, rostral, anterior loreals, and prefrontal scales; prefrontals in narrow medial contact, in contact with anterior and posterior loreals, frontal, frontonasal, 1st supraciliary, and 1st supraocular; frontal slightly longer than wide, in contact with two supraoculars, posterior apex rounded and narrow; four enlarged supraoculars, 1st largest, 2nd widest; frontoparietals fused, in contact with three supraoculars; interparietal arrowhead-shaped with parietal eye in posterior third; parietals in broad overlap, right overlapping left, in contact with fourth supraocular, postsupraocular, primary and secondary temporal; nuchals same size as dorsals, not obliquely enlarged.

Nasal pierced in center by large naris, surrounded anteriorly by rostral, dorsally by frontonasal, posteriorly by anterior loreal, and ventrally by 1st supralabial; single anterior loreal, posterior loreal wider than anterior; preoculars three; seven supralabials, 5th widest and under center of eye; supraciliaries 11, anterior three and posterior two larger than rest of series; 11 ciliaries; lower eyelid scaly and transparent, lacking non-scaled “window;” suboculars eight, largest anteriorly; primary temporals three, secondary temporals two, lower overlapping upper; ear large (EarD [1.34]/EyeD [2.08] = 0.644), round, and moderately sunk.

Infralabials seven, decreasing in size posteriorly in series; mental large, forming a straight suture with a single large postmental and first infralabials; postmental contacts anterior two infralabials; chin scales increasing in number posteriorly (one, three) and then blending into size and shape of gular scales; gular scales slightly smaller than ventrals.

Body slightly elongate (AGD [24.74]/SVL [45.00] = 0.55), cylindrical, with 31 equal-sized midbody scales, limbs overlapping when adpressed; lateral body scales with two or three rows of apical pits; paravertebral scales 65, imbricate, with one row of apical pits. Tail elongate, slightly longer than body (TL [56.0]/SVL [45.0] = 1.2) cylindrical at base, slightly thicker dorsally than ventrally; subcaudal scales nondifferentiated; distal half of tail regenerated.

Forelimbs smaller than hind limbs (FLL [4.61]/HLL [5.83] = 0.79), pentadactyl; dorsal forelimb scales slightly smaller than body scale, ventral forelimb scales much smaller than ventral scales, dorsal and ventral forelimb scales imbricate with multiple rows of apical pits; multiple rows of dorsal scales on digits. Relative digit length with lamellae (L/R) in parentheses IV(12/12)> III(11/11)> II(9/9)> V(7/7)> I(5/5). Palmar scales irregular, raised, forming ventral protrusions from palmar surface; large set of five scales on distolateral edge of Digit V to the wrist, largest scale at wrist.

Hind limbs small (HLL [5.83]/SVL [45.0] = 0.13), pentadactyl; dorsal and ventral hind limb scales smaller than body scales; dorsal scales bearing apical pits, ventral scales with single row of apical pits; multiple scale rows on dorsal side of digits. Lamellae slightly keeled. Relative digit length with lamellae (L/R) in parentheses: IV(18/ 18)> III(14/15)> V(11/12)> II(9/9)> I(6/6). Plantar scales irregular, slightly raised; four large, ventrally pointed scales along ankle/plantar margin; ventrally raised scales along distolateral edge of Digit V to ankle, increasing in size toward ankle.

Precloacal region with series of enlarged scales between pelvic region and cloaca, more elongate than ventral scales; medial precloacal scales larger, overlapping lateral scales.

Coloration of holotype ( Figs. 4 D, E, F; 5C, D). Dorsal ground color brown with a series of dark brown vertebral spots from nuchals to tail. Dorsolateral band broad, beginning at the posterior of the eye, extending over the ear and forelimb to the anterior portion of the tail; band dark brown, bordered dorsally by a series of white spots and ventrally by irregular white spots; dorsolateral band extends ventrally through midbody with a ventral edge that diffuses into the lateral coloration of black mottling on a cream background. Labials ground color white with dark brown mottling resembling irregular bands, brown mottling extends throughout throat, through gular region to the forelimbs. Dorsal surface of limbs dark brown with irregularly arranged circular tan spots, ventral surface of limbs same color as ventrum. Coloration in life does not differ substantially from coloration in preservative (RMB photos, deposited at KU).

Reproductive condition of holotype. Female with a single small oviductal egg.

Variation. All paratypes resemble the holotype in overall color pattern, some with a lighter dorsal coloration. There is no sexual dimorphism in this species. Degree of throat mottling varies from very light (KU 329935) to heavy (KU 325796). Variation in meristic and mensural characters in the type series and referred specimens is presented in Table 2.

Distribution ( Fig. 1 ). This species is found in abundance in the northern Sierra Madre and Cordillera mountain ranges of northern Luzon Island ( Fig. 1 ). In the Sierra Madre, it is as far south as Bulacan Province.

Natural history. Little is known about its natural history. Specimens have been collected in pitfall traps near streams and by hand when turning rotting logs.

Etymology. The specific epithet is a patronym in the genitive singular, and is chosen in recognition of the many contributions of Jimmy A. McGuire to the systematics of Southeast Asian reptiles.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Map of Luzon Island showing the collection localities for the new species and P. decipiens.

FIGURE 2. Partitioned Bayesian majority rule consensus estimate of molecular phylogeny from the ND 2 data of Parvoscincus. Populations within the P. decipiens complex are genetically unique and are diagnosed as new species based on morphological differences. Black circles label nodes with posterior probabilities above 0.95.

FIGURE 4. Photographs of heads from ventral, lateral, and dorsal perspective to show color pattern variation among species. Images A, B, C Parvoscincus decipiens; D, E, F Parvoscincus jimmymcguirei sp. nov. holotype; G, H, I, Parvoscincus arvindiesmosi sp. nov. holotype; J, K, L Parvoscincus agtorum sp. nov. holotype; M, N, O, Parvoscincus abstrusus sp. nov. holotype (Male); P, Q, R, Parvoscincus abstrusus sp. nov. paratype (Female); S, T, U, Parvoscincus banahaoensis sp. nov. holotype; V, W, X, Parvoscincus palaliensis sp. nov. holotype; Y, Z, AA, Parvoscincus aurorus sp. nov. holotype.