Hemidactylus paucifasciatus, Mohapatra & Agarwal & Mohalik & Dutta & Khandekar, 2023

Mohapatra, Pratyush P., Agarwal, Ishan, Mohalik, Rakesh Kumar, Dutta, Sushil K. & Khandekar, Akshay, 2023, Hemidactylus paucifasciatus (Squamata: Gekkonidae), a new species of large-bodied, tuberculate gecko from Northern Odisha, India, Zootaxa 5301 (3), pp. 365-382 : 369-377

Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov.

( Figures 2–6 ; Table 3 )

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:967860CD-F420-432A-ABAF-4D8B4A3E6952

Hemidactylus sp. , Dutta et al. (2009); Debata, 2017

Holotype. ZSI-R-28357, adult male, from Gadachandi Temple, Anandapur, (21.2273° N, 86.2549° E; ca. 115 m asl.), Keonjhar District , Odisha State, India, collected by Pratyush P. Mohapatra & Rakesh Kumar Mohalik on 18 April 2019.

Paratypes. NCBS-BH668 , adult male, from Bamanghati, Bangiriposi (22.1714° N, 86.4925° E; ca. 341 m asl.), Mayurbhanj District , Odisha State, India, collected by Pratyush P. Mohapatra & Sushil Kumar Dutta on 29 November 2014 ; NCBS-BH669 , adult female, same locality as holotype except collected by Rakesh Kumar Mohalik on 24 February 2019; ZSI-CZRC-7117, sub-adult female, same locality and collection data as holotype .

Referred specimen. ZSI-R-28526, sub-adult male, from Chakratirtha, Kathakata, Anandapur (21.2569° N, 86.2500° E; ca. 197 m asl), Keonjhar District , Odisha State, India, collected by Rakesh Kumar Mohalik on 22 June 2022 .

Etymology. The species epithet is derived from a combination of the Latin adjectives pauci (English: few) and fasciatus (English: banded), referring to the lesser number of dorsal bands in this species.

Suggested Common Name. Few-banded termite hill gecko

Diagnosis. A large-sized Hemidactylus, SVL up to 118 mm (n =4). Dorsal pholidosis heterogeneous, composed of subcircular granular scales intermixed with enlarged, fairly regularly arranged, strongly keeled, conical tubercles in 16–18 longitudinal rows, extending from occiput to tail base, that are heterogeneous in shape and size; enlarged tubercles on the two most medial parasagittal rows smaller, 21–24 tubercles in paravertebral rows; those on dorsolateral aspect of flank largest, gradually decreasing in size downwards, last two rows on flank marginally larger or equal to medial parasagittal rows, weakly keeled. Ventrolateral folds indistinct; about 29–31 scale rows across belly. Digits with enlarged scansors, lamellae in straight transverse series, all divided except the apical and 1–3 basal lamellae, nine or ten lamellae beneath first digit and 11–13 beneath fourth digit of manus and pes. Males with 12 or 13 femoral pores on each side separated by three or four poreless scales. Tail with 6–9 much enlarged, strongly keeled, conical tubercles forming whorls; median row of subcaudal plates large, covering almost entire portion of the tail; single postcloacal spur of unequal size on each side that are smooth and much smaller than dorsal tubercles at mid-body. Dorsal coloration rusty-brown with three (rarely four) transversely arranged light bands, edged with black or dark brown, between the occiput and sacrum; head lighter than body in life, with a narrow lighted collar edged by dark brown that is continuous with the post-ocular marking.

Comparison with members of the prashadi group. The new species was phylogenetically recovered as part of the prashadi group and can be morphologically assigned to the group based on its large size and prominent dorsal tuberculation.We therefore restrict comparisons to other members of the prashadi group. Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. can be easily distinguished from other members of the prashadi group by having heterogeneous dorsal scales, composed of subcircular granular scales intermixed with enlarged, fairly regularly arranged, strongly keeled, conical tubercles, 16–18 DTR (versus homogenous dorsal pholidosis of imbricate scales, lacking enlarged tubercles in H. scabriceps (Annandale) ; dorsal pholidosis heterogenous, composed of granular scales intermixed with enlarged, rounded, weakly-keeled tubercles, 18–20 DTR in H. aaronbaueri ; dorsal pholidosis heterogenous, composed of granular scales intermixed with enlarged, fairly regularly arranged, strongly keeled, conical tubercles — 18–20 DTR in H. acanthopholis Mirza & Sanap ; 18–20 DTR in H. kangerensis ; 12–14 DTR in H. kimbulae ; 20–24 DTR in H. maculatus ; 22–24 DTR in H. paaragowli Srikanthan, Swamy, Mohan & Pal ; 14–16 DTR in H. prashadi ; 19 or 20 DTR in H. triedrus ); males with 12 or 13 FP and three or four SBFP (versus 19 FP and six SBFP in H. aaronbaueri ; 19–21 FP and 13 or 14 SBFP in H. acanthopholis ; 15–19 FP and 2–4 SBFP in H. depressus Gray ; 24–30 FP and 2–4 SBFP in H. easai Das, Pal, Siddarth, Palot, Deepak & Narayanan ; 23–28 FP and 1–3 SBFP in H. graniticolus Agarwal, Giri & Bauer ; 14 or 15 FP and 11 SBPP in H. hegdei Pal & Mirza ; 22–24 FP and 3–6 SBFP in H. hunae ; 18–21 FP and four SBFP in H. kangerensis ; 21–24 FP and 5–7 SBFP in H. kimbulae ; 21–25 FP and two or three SBFP in H. kolliensis Agarwal, Bauer, Giri & Khandekar ; 16–19 FP and 5–9 SBFP in H. maculatus ; 10–12 FP and 16–18 SBFP in H. paaragowli ; 17–20 FP and 1–3 SBFP in H. pieresii Kelaart ; 17–20 FP and three SBFP in H. prashadi ; 16–18 FP and 13–15 SBFP in H. sirumalaiensis Khandekar, Thackeray, Pawar & Agarwal ; 17 or 18 FP and five SBFP in H. siva ; 20–23 FP and 3–6 SBFP in H. sushilduttai ; 17 or 18 FP and seven SBFP in H. tamhiniensis ; 7–9 FP and 1–3 SBFP in H. triedrus ; 17–22 FP and ten or 11 SBFP in H. vanam Chaitanya, Lajmi & Giri ; seven or eight FP and three SBFP in H. whitakeri ; FP absent, only precloacal pores present in H. scabriceps ); 29–31 MVSR (versus 41–43 MVSR in H. aaronbaueri ; 35–40 MVSR in H. acanthopholis ; 28–36 MVSR in H. depressus ; 41 or 42 MVSR in H. easai ; 40–46 MVSR in H. graniticolus ; 32–34 MVSR in H. hegdei and H. kolliensis ; 36–39 MVSR in H. kimbulae ; 28–34 MVSR in H. maculatus ; 33–39 MVSR in H. paaragowli ; 32–39 MVSR in H. pieresii ; 36–38 MVSR in H. sirumalaiensis ; 54–59 MVSR in H. tamhiniensis ; and 34–40 MVSR in H. vanam ).

Additionally, Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. can be easily distinguished from all three described members of the H. triedrus clade by its large SVL, up to 118 mm (versus, medium SVL <80 mm in H. sahgali , H. triedrus , and H. whitakeri ).

Description of holotype. The holotype (ZSI-R-28357) is in good condition except for an 8.7 mm long incision in the sternal region for tissue collection, a minor fold of skin (not the ventrolateral fold) from axilla to groin on left side, and the tail is bent towards the right ( Fig. 2 ). Adult male, SVL 117.7 mm; head short (HL/SVL 0.23), slightly elongate (HW/HL 0.88), not strongly depressed (HD/HL 0.55), distinct from neck. Loreal region slightly inflated, canthus rostralis indistinct ( Fig. 2C ). Snout short (ES/HL 0.45); much longer than eye diameter (ED/ES 0.52); scales on snout, canthus rostralis, forehead and inter-orbital region heterogenous, mostly granular and conical; scales on the snout and canthus rostralis much larger than those on occiput, forehead and inter-orbital regions, roughly oval ( Fig. 2A ). Eye small (ED/HL 0.23); pupil vertical with crenulated margins; supraciliaries small, pointed, gradually increasing in size towards front of the orbit ( Fig. 2C ). Ear opening oval (greatest diameter 2.5 mm); eye to ear distance slightly greater than diameter of eye (EE/ED 0.59). Rostral wider than deep (RW/RL 1.80), partially divided dorsally by a weakly developed rostral groove; single enlarged internasal between two slightly larger supranasals, three postnasals on each side, marginally smaller than supranasal; rostral in contact with nasal, supralabial I, internasal and supranasals on either side; nostrils small (1.1 mm), oval; nasal scale surrounded by rostral, supranasal, three postnasals, and supralabial I on either side; two rows of scales separate orbit from supralabials on each side. Mental subtriangular; two pairs of well-developed postmentals, the inner pair slightly shorter (3.4 mm) than the mental (4.1 mm), and in strong contact with each other (1.2 mm) below mental, outer pair slightly shorter (2.3 mm) than the inner pair and separated from each other by inner pair ( Fig. 2B ). Inner postmentals bordered by mental, infralabial I, outer postmental and five small gular scales on either side; outer postmentals bordered by infralabial I & II, inner postmental, and six gular scales increasing in size laterally, two outer-most of which are much enlarged and continues as two rows of enlarged scales below the infralabials, decreasing in size posteriorly ( Fig. 2B ). Labials large, decreasing in size posteriorly; supralabials (on both sides) to mid-orbital position eight, and 11 up to angle of jaw; seven infralabials (on both sides) to mid-orbital position and nine up to angle of jaw; ( Fig. 2C ).

Body relatively stout (BW/SVL 0.23), not elongate (AGL/SVL 0.44), ventrolateral folds indistinct ( Fig. 4 ). Dorsal pholidosis heterogeneous, composed of subcircular granular scales intermixed with enlarged, fairly regularly arranged, strongly keeled, conical tubercles in 16 longitudinal rows, extending from occiput to tail, that are heterogeneous in shape and size; enlarged tubercles on the two most medial parasagittal rows smaller, those on dorsolateral aspect of flank largest, gradually decreasing in size downwards, last two rows on flank marginally larger or equal to medial parasagittal rows, weakly keeled ( Fig. 4 ); each enlarged tubercle surrounded by a rosette of 14–16 small granules with 1–3 granules between two longitudinally adjacent enlarged tubercles (6–8 between parasagittal rows at mid-body); enlarged tubercles on nape and shoulder marginally smaller than parasagittal rows, those on occiput still smaller, weakly keeled, conical; tubercles on temporal region slightly pronounced than those on occiput, strongly conical ( Figs. 2A & 4A ). Ventral scales much larger than dorsal granular scales, smooth, imbricate, subequal, slightly larger on precloacal and femoral region than on chest and abdominal region ( Fig. 2B ); 30 mid-body scale rows across belly; 88 scales from posterior margin of ear-opening to the lowest enlarged scale row above cloaca; gular region with small, flattened, granular scales, becoming slightly larger and imbricate on lateral aspect ( Fig. 2B ). Scales on palm and sole smooth, imbricate, subcircular; enlarged tubercles on dorsal aspect of upper arm much smaller than those on mid-body dorsum, weakly keeled, slightly conical, subimbricate; dorsal aspect of forearm with smaller, granular scales, intermixed with a few enlarged, keeled, conical tubercles, those on anterior aspect smooth, flat, imbricate; scales on dorsal part of thigh and shank granular, intermixed with enlarged, keeled, conical tubercles, which are larger on thigh compared to shank; anterior aspect of thigh with flatter scales, posterior aspect with granular scales ( Fig. 2 ). Precloacal-femoral pores in slightly enlarged row of scales, separated medially by a diastema of three poreless scales, 13 (right) and 12 (left) ( Fig. 3D ). Fore and hind limbs relatively short, stout; forearm short (FL/SVL 0.12); tibia short (CL/SVL 0.14); digits moderately short, strongly clawed; all digits of manus and digits I–IV of pes indistinctly webbed; terminal phalanx of all digits curved, arising angularly from distal portion of expanded lamellar pad, half or more than half the length of the associated toepad; scansors beneath each toe in a straight transverse series, divided except for a single distal and three basal scansors on digit I and one in other digits: 11-12-12-13-12 (left manus), 11-12-12-13-13 (right manus; Fig. 3E ), 10-13-14-13-13 (left pes), 10-13-14-13-13 (right pes; Fig. 3F ). Relative length of digits (measurements in mm in parentheses): I (5.1) <II (7.2) <V (7.7) <III (7.9) = IV (7.9) (left manus); I (7.3) <II (8.7) <III (9.2) <IV (9.3) = V (9.3) (left pes).

Tail depressed, ~ 2/3 rd of its length regenerated, flat beneath, verticillate, with well-defined median furrow; tail slightly shorter than snout-vent length (TL/SVL ratio 0.80) ( Fig. 2 ). Dorsal scales at tail base granular, similar in size and shape to those on mid-body dorsum, gradually becoming larger, flatter, pointed, weakly keeled, subimbricate posteriorly and smooth laterally, intermixed with series of 6–9 much enlarged, strongly keeled, conical tubercles; nine enlarged tubercles in first segment, eight in second, six in third and fourth segments. Regenerated portion of tail covered above with much larger, flattened, smooth, subimbricate scales, decreasing in size posteriorly ( Fig. 2A ). Ventral scales at tail base smooth, imbricate, slightly larger than ventrals at mid-body; rest (including regenerated portion) of the tail with large plate like subcaudal scales (median row) covering almost entire portion of the tail, first three subcaudal scales divided, rest entire, roughly rectangular; median row bordered laterally by one or two rows of large, smooth, imbricate scales ( Fig. 2B ). A single, smooth postcloacal spur on either side, much smaller than dorsal tubercles at mid-body ( Fig. 2B ).

Colouration in life. ( Fig. 5A ) Dorsum rusty brown, head and limbs lighter than body; a thick, dark-brown postocular stripe speckled with orange behind the eye that extends till the lateral sides of occiput and joins a thinner dark brown collar; postocular streak flanked by narrow white bands and dark brown collar is anteriorly edged with a white band. Iris dark brown with golden mottling towards the upper and posterior sides. Labials cream-white, speckled with dark-brown spots below orbit, loreal and prefrontal region speckled with light orange; rostrum dark brown. Dorsum with a series of broad (covering 3–5 tubercle rows), off-white transverse bands bordered with fine dark-brown edges; one across the shoulder with dark shades at the centre, a thinner wavy band at mid-body, an incomplete band originating from the right flank is directed upwards on the left side approaching the previous band, one over the anterior sacral region, and one on the original portion of the tail. The lateral sides of head, axilla, flanks, groin and base of the tail whitish, which is continuous with the venter. The tubercles of the body are darker at the tip. Limbs and phalanges light gray-brown. The regenerated portion of the tail is the same rusty-brown as the body without any bands.

Colour in preservative. ( Fig. 2 ) Overall colour faded in preservative to light beige; orbital and frontal region on head even lighter. The dark-brown margins of the transverse bands have faded to brown and the band on the tail base has only retained the anterior brown margins. The darker markings on the enlarged tubercles on the body are faded and appear indistinct after preservation. Crown of head similar in colour with that of dorsum, except slightly darker pigmentation on snout.

Variation and additional information from paratype series. Mensural and meristic data for the type series is given in Table 3 . There are three specimens (an adult male, female and a sub-adult female) ranging in SVL from 67.6 mm to 108.3 mm. All paratypes resemble the holotype except as follows: supranasals separated by two much smaller internasals in ZSI-CZRC-7117 and NCBS-BH669 , supranasals are in strong contact with each other and a much smaller internasal scale above rostral in NCBS-BH668 ; six gular scales bordering inner postmental on each side in NCBS-BH668 , five gular scales on left and six on right bordering inner postmental in ZSI-CZRC-7117 and NCBS-BH669 ; inner postmental is in contact with infralabial I & II on left and infralabial I on right side in ZSI-CZRC-7117. Seven gular scales bordering outer postmental on each side in ZSI-CZRC-7117, six gular scales on left and five on right side bordering outer postmental in NCBS-BH669 ; outer postmental divided on left side and in contact with infralabial II on each side in ZSI-CZRC-7117 . Paratype NCBS-BH668 with entire but partly regenerated tail, marginally shorter than body ( TL / SVL 0.89); ZSI-CZRC-7117 with incomplete tail and NCBS-BH669 is without tail. All paratypes closely agree with the holotype in colouration except the subadult specimen ZSI-CZRC-7117 which is much darker with prominent bands on body and tail. A faint mid-dorsal line may be visible. Variations are also marked in the mid-body banding in the holotype and paratypes; in contrast to the holotype which has a thinner off-white band followed by an incomplete band at the mid body, in ZSI-CZRC-7117 and NCBS-BH668 the mid body band is single, whereas in NCBS-BH669 the band is laterally dilated forming an incomplete “X” shape; the colouration of the regenerated tail in life is light brown, without any enlarged tubercles ( Figs. 5B, C & 6 ) .

Distribution. ( Fig. 1A ) The type locality of Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. is adjacent to the Hadagarh Wildlife Sanctuary (WLS), and based on our present understanding, the species occurs in three Protected Areas, namely Hadagarh WLS, Kuldiha WLS and Similipal Tiger Reserve, across the Keonjhar, Balasore and Mayurbhanj districts of Odisha. As per the Wildlife Management Plan of Hadagarh WLS ( Anonymous, 2021), the landscape with miscellaneous vegetation falls within the Boula-Nuasahi hilly region in Garhjat Hills. This region exhibits extensive occurrence of quartzite and quartz schists on both sides of the Salandi River. The granite outcrops are commonly seen to the North of Sajanapal in the valleys and low-lying hills, which are the preferred microhabitat of the species. The area is also characterized by chromite deposits in association with ultrabasic rocks (peridolite and serpentinties), which are subjected to rapid habitat destruction due to mining activities.

Natural history. ( Fig. 7 ) Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. was observed on rocks (rupicolous) and on trees (arboreal) and juveniles were more often found on the ground than adults. This species was observed on Mangifera indica L and Terminalia alata Heyne ex Roth trees in several instances inside Hadagarh Wildlife sanctuary. On 16 April 2020 two juveniles were observed near Pitanau beat house of Hadagarh WLS. A common krait scavenging on a road-killed Hemidactylus sp. reported from Kuldiha WLS ( Debata 2017) corresponds to a sub-adult H. paucifasciatus sp. nov. This species also enters human habitation in the forest fringe villages and is seen in forest rest houses that are infrequently used by visitors. They slough loose skin easily when handled, especially on the head, a typical defensive behaviour related to regional integumentary loss observed in numerous geckos that has been reported in two members of the acanthopholis group within the H. prashadi clade ( Bauer et al. 1989, 2006; Bauer & Russell 1992; Chaitanya et al. 2018; Khandekar et al. 2020). Prey comprises mostly of insects; individuals were seen feeding on moths, crickets, cockroaches, termites and beetles. The other sympatric geckos found in its habitat are Eublepharis hardwickii Gray , Hemidactylus frenatus Duméril & Bibron , H. cf. kushmorensis Murray , H. leschenaultii Duméril & Bibron and Cyrtodactylus nebulosus (Beddome) .

Figures

FIGURE 1. (A) Relief map of Odisha and neighbouring states showing the distribution of members of the sushilduttai and triedrus clades, and (B) Maximum Likelihood phylogeny of the prashadi group of Indian Hemidactylus based on the protein coding ND2 gene. Bootstrap support shown and nodes and major clades marked.

FIGURE 2. Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. (holotype, ZSI-R-28357): (A) dorsal view of body, (B) ventral view of body. Scale bars 10 mm, photos by Akshay Khandekar.

FIGURE 3. Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. (holotype, ZSI-R-28357): (A) dorsal view of head, (B) ventral view of head, (C) lateral view of head, (D) view of femoral region showing femoral pores, (E) ventral view of right manus, and (F) ventral view of right pes. Scale bars 5 mm, photos by Akshay Khandekar.

FIGURE 4. Detailed pholidosis at mid-body of Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. (holotype, ZSI-R-28357): (A) dorsal side and (B) ventral side. Scale bars 10 mm, photos by Akshay Khandekar.

FIGURE 5. Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. in life: (A) male, holotype, ZSI-R-28357 (B) male, paratype, NCBS-BH668 and (C) sub-adult female, paratype, ZSI-CZRC-7117. Photos by Rakesh Kumar Mohalik (A, C) and Pratyush P. Mohapatra (B).

FIGURE 6. Paratypes of Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov., from left to right, ZSI-CZRC-7117 NCBS-BH668 NCBS- BH669. Scale bars 10 mm, photo by Akshay Khandekar.

FIGURE 7. Habitat photo of Hemidactylus paucifasciatus sp. nov. from Gadachandi Temple, Anandapur, Kendujhar District, Odisha State, India. Photo Pratyush P. Mohapatra.