Cnemaspis rudhira, Agarwal & Thackeray & Khandekar, 2022
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publication ID |
https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/vz.72.e94799 |
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publication LSID |
lsid:zoobank.org:pub:053FE4B0-F41E-49BF-90C3-156A02C86DCE |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/06B3772F-2903-49E1-B345-48B1E8F915D2 |
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taxon LSID |
lsid:zoobank.org:act:06B3772F-2903-49E1-B345-48B1E8F915D2 |
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treatment provided by |
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scientific name |
Cnemaspis rudhira |
| status |
sp. nov. |
Cnemaspis rudhira sp. nov.
Figs 18B-18 View Figure 18 , 19 View Figure 19 , 20 View Figure 20 , 21 View Figure 21 , 22 View Figure 22
Cnemaspis cf. gracilis Khandekar et al. 2019
Holotype.
NRC-AA-1238 (AK 566), adult male, from near Sri Salaipaarai Muniappan Temple, Yercaud, in the Shevaroy hill range (11.7761°N, 78.1900°E; 1060 m asl.), Salem district, Tamil Nadu state, India, collected by Akshay Khandekar, Swapnil Pawar, and Tejas Thackeray on 2nd January 2019.
Paratypes.
NRC-AA-1246 (AK 567), adult male, NRC-AA-1247 (AK 568), adult female, same data as holotype; NRC-AA-1239 (AK 208), NRC-AA-1240 (AK 209), NRC-AA-1241 (AK 212) adult males, from Yercaud Ghat, in the Shevaroy hill range (11.7796°N, 78.1911°E; 1200 m asl.), and NRC-AA-1242 (AK 213) adult female (11.7655°N, 78.1884°E; 800 m asl.), collected by Akshay Khandekar, Ishan Agarwal, Nikhil Gaitonde, on 18th December 2018; NRC-AA-1243 (AK 539), NRC-AA-1244 (AK 541), NRC-AA-1245 (AK 543), adult males, from near Botanical garden, Yercaud, in the Shevaroy hill range (11.7810°N, 78.2035°E; 1400 m asl.), same collection data as holotype.
Etymology.
The specific epithet is from the Sanskrit rudhira which means blood, alluding to the blood-red colouration of this beautiful species, and is used as a noun in apposition.
Suggested Common Name.
Scarlet dwarf gecko.
Diagnosis.
A small-sized Cnemaspis , snout to vent length up to 33.8 mm (n = 10). Dorsal pholidosis heterogeneous; weakly keeled granular scales intermixed with a fairly regularly arranged rows of enlarged, strongly keeled, conical tubercles; last one or two rows of enlarged tubercles on flank weakly keeled, spine-like; 10-12 rows of dorsal tubercles at mid-body, 13-17 tubercles in paravertebral rows; ventral scales smooth, subcircular, subimbricate, subequal from chest to vent, 30-32 scales across belly at mid-body, 101-121 longitudinal scales from mental to cloaca; subdigital scansors smooth, mostly unpaired, unnotched; 8-11 lamellae under digit I of manus and pes; 14-17 lamellae under digit IV of manus and 17-21 lamellae under digit IV of pes; males with four or five femoral pores on each thigh separated by 6-9 poreless scales from series of 4-6 precloacal pores, precloacal pores separated medially by single (rarely 2, n = 1/8) poreless scales; tail with enlarged, strongly keeled, pointed, and spine-like tubercles forming whorls; median row of subcaudals smooth, roughly rectangular, and distinctly enlarged. Dorsum orange, mottled with numerous small light grey spots and fine black spots with an indistinct series of light grey vertebral blotches extending from neck to tail base; single central black dorsal ocellus on neck and smaller ocellus on occiput, separated by a light grey blotch; venter off-white with black speckles, margin of throat strongly marked; original tail in males grey or with 9-11 alternating dark and light grey bands, regenerated tail orange.
Comparison with members of C. gracilis clade.
Cnemaspis rudhira sp. nov. is a member of the Cnemaspis bangara clade and can be easily distinguished from all members of the clade by a combination of the following differing or non-overlapping characters: small-sized Cnemaspis with maximum SVL 34 mm (versus medium-sized Cnemaspis , SVL up to 41 mm in C. thackerayi , and C. salimalii sp. nov.); 13-17 tubercles in paravertebral rows (versus only a few irregularly arranged tubercles in paravertebral region in C. mundanthuraiensis , 11 or 12 in C. jackieii ); 10-12 rows of dorsal tubercles at mid-body (versus eight or nine rows of dorsal tubercles at mid-body in C. jackieii , 6-8 rows of dorsal tubercles at mid-body in C. mundanthuraiensis ); spine-like tubercles present on flanks (versus spine-like tubercles absent on flanks in C. agarwali , C. jackieii , C. shevaroyensis , and C. thackerayi ); 30-32 ventral scales across belly at mid-body (versus 24-26 ventral scales across belly at mid-body in C. agarwali , 26-29 (rarely 30) in C. gracilis , 21-24 in C. shevaroyensis , and 22-25 in C. thackerayi ); males with two (rarely 3) precloacal pore on each side which are separated medially by single (rarely 2) poreless scales (versus males with single (rarely 2) precloacal pore on each side which are separated medially by 2-4 poreless scales in C. gracilis ; precloacal pores either absent or single precloacal pores on each side which are separated medially by 2-4 poreless scales in C. mundanthuraiensis ; males with continuous series of precloacal pores in C. pachaimalaiensis sp. nov.; single central dorsal ocellus each on occiput and neck (versus a single dorsal ocellus present on occiput and neck, two pairs on either side just anterior and sometimes posterior to forelimb insertions in C. agarwali ; a single central dorsal ocellus each on occiput and neck, ocellus on neck flanked anteriorly on each side by a slightly larger ocellus in C. agayagangai sp. nov.; a single central ocellus on neck, flanked posteriorly by a pair of much larger squarish blotches and anteriorly by a pair of subequal squarish blotches, indistinct spot on occiput in C. fantastica sp. nov.; a large central black dorsal ocellus on neck flanked anteriorly and posteriorly on each side by elongate dark ocelli, smaller ocellus on occiput flanked on each side by a smaller ocellus; indistinct rows of smaller dark ocelli may be present in C. pachaimalaiensis sp. nov.; a single dorsal ocellus present on occiput and neck, two pairs on either side just anterior and posterior to forelimb insertions in C. shevaroyensis .
Description of the holotype.
Adult male in good state of preservation except tail tip slightly bend towards left, longitudinal skin fold on vertebral region between limb insertions (Fig. 19A-E View Figure 19 ). SVL 32.3 mm, head short (HL/SVL 0.24), wide (HW/HL 0.66), not strongly depressed (HD/HL 0.47), distinct from neck. Loreal region marginally inflated, canthus rostralis not distinct. Snout half of head length (ES/HL 0.52), marginally more than 2.5 times eye diameter (ES/ED 2.6); scales on snout and canthus rostralis subcircular, subequal, and weakly keeled; much larger than those on forehead and interorbital region; scales on forehead similar to those on snout and canthus rostralis except smaller, elongated, and weakly conical; scales on interorbital region even smaller, granular and weakly keeled; scales on occipital and temporal region heterogeneous, slightly enlarged, weakly keeled, conical tubercles intermixed with smaller, weakly keeled and weakly conical granular scales (Fig. 20A View Figure 20 ). Eye small (ED/HL 0.20) with round pupil; supraciliaries short, larger anteriorly; six interorbital scale rows across narrowest point of frontal bone; 25 or 26 scale rows between left and right supraciliaries at mid-orbit (Fig. 20A, C View Figure 20 ). Ear-opening deep, oval, small (EL/HL 0.05); eye to ear distance greater than diameter of eye (EE/ED 1.50) (Fig. 20C View Figure 20 ). Rostral more than two times wider (1.56 mm) than high (0.72 mm), incompletely divided dorsally by a strongly developed rostral groove and internasal scale for more than half of its height; a single enlarged supranasal on each side, much larger than postnasals, separated from each other by a much smaller, elongated internasal scale and still smaller scale on snout; two postnasals, upper postnasal marginally larger than lower; rostral in contact with supralabial I, nostril, internasal, supranasal, and lower postnasal on either side; nostrils oval, surrounded by two postnasals, supranasal, and rostral on either side; two rows of scales separate orbit from supralabials (Fig. 20C View Figure 20 ). Mental enlarged, subtriangular, slightly wider (1.97 mm) than high (1.50 mm); two pairs of postmentals, inner pair roughly rectangular, much shorter (0.84 mm) than mental, in strong contact with each other below mental; inner pair bordered by mental, infralabial I, outer postmental, enlarged median chin shield on either side and an enlarged chin shield on left side; outer postmentals roughly rectangular, even smaller (0.63 mm) than inner pair, bordered by inner postmentals, infralabial I and II, and three enlarged chin shields on either side and median chin shield on left side; three enlarged gular scales between left and right outer postmentals; all chin scales bordering postmentals flat, subcircular, smooth, and smaller than outermost postmentals; scales on rest of throat, even smaller, flattened, subequal, and smooth (Fig. 20B View Figure 20 ). Infralabials bordered below by a row or two of slightly enlarged, much elongated scales, decreasing in size posteriorly. Ten supralabials up to angle of jaw on left, 11 on right side, and six at midorbital position on each side; supralabial I largest, gradually decreasing in size posteriorly; eight infralabials up to angle of jaw on left and nine on right, five at midorbital position on either side; infralabial I largest, gradually decreasing in size posteriorly (Fig. 20C View Figure 20 ).
Body relatively slender (BW/AGL 0.51), trunk less than half of SVL (AGL/SVL 0.38) without ventrolateral folds; spine-like scales on flank present (Fig. 21A-C View Figure 21 ). Dorsal pholidosis heterogeneous; weakly keeled granular scales intermixed with a fairly regularly arranged row of enlarged, strongly keeled, conical tubercles; tubercles in approximately 12 longitudinal rows at mid-body including spine-like scales at lower flank; 14 (left) and 15 (right) tubercles in paravertebral row from above forelimb insertion to the hind limb insertion (Fig. 21A, C View Figure 21 ). Ventral scales much larger than granular scales on dorsum smooth, subcircular, subimbricate, subequal from chest to vent; mid-body scale rows across belly 31; 115 scales from mental to anterior border of cloaca (Fig. 21B View Figure 21 ). Scales on base of neck similar to those on belly, marginally smaller; gular region with still smaller, subequal, smooth, flattened scales, those bordering postmentals enlarged, smooth, subcircular, and flattened (Fig. 20B View Figure 20 ). Four femoral pores on either thigh, separated by nine poreless on either side from four precloacal pores, precloacal pores separated medially by a single poreless scale (Fig. 20D View Figure 20 ).
Scales on palm and soles granular, smooth, subcircular, subimbricate and flattened; scales on dorsal aspects of limbs heterogeneous in shape and size; mixture of small granular, weakly keeled, imbricate scales which are twice the size of granules on the body dorsum, largest on anterolateral aspect of the hands and feet; posterolateral aspect of limbs with small weakly keeled to smooth granular scales; scales on lower arm and shank small, subimbricate, and keeled; ventral aspect of forelimbs with small, smooth, subimbricate scales, larger on lower arm than upper arm; ventral aspect of hindlimb with enlarged, smooth, flattened, subimbricate scales, slightly larger than body ventrals (Fig. 19A, B View Figure 19 ). Forelimbs and hindlimbs moderately long, slender (LAL/SVL 0.15; CL/SVL 0.18); digits long, with strong, recurved claw, distinctly inflected, distal portions laterally compressed conspicuously. Digits with unpaired lamellae except basal one or two paired on some digits, separated into a basal and narrower distal series by single enlarged lamella at inflection; basal lamellae series: (1-4-4-4-4 right manus, 1-5-5-8-6 right pes), (2-3-4-4-3 left manus, Fig. 20E View Figure 20 ; 1 View Figure 1 - 4 View Figure 4 - 5 View Figure 5 - 8 View Figure 8 - 6 View Figure 6 left pes, Fig. 20F View Figure 20 ); distal lamellae series: (9-10-13-12-10 right manus, 9-11-13-13-11 right pes), (9-10-12-12-10 left manus, Fig. 20E View Figure 20 ; 9 View Figure 9 - 11 View Figure 11 - 14 View Figure 14 - 13-13 View Figure 13 left pes, Fig. 20F View Figure 20 ). Relative length of digits (measurements in mm in parentheses): IV (2.6)> III (2.4)> II (2.3) = V (2.3)> I (1.9) (left manus); IV (3.9)> V (3.3)> III (3.2)> II (2.9)> I (1.8) (left pes).
Tail original except tip (5.1 mm) which is regenerated, entire, subcylindrical, slender, slightly longer than snout-vent length (TL/SVL 1.30; Fig. 19C-E View Figure 19 ). Dorsal scales on tail base weakly keeled, granular, similar in size and shape to granular scales on mid-body dorsum, gradually becoming larger, flattened, imbricate posteriorly, intermixed with enlarged, strongly keeled, distinctly pointed, conical tubercles; enlarged tubercles on the tail forming whorls; six tubercles each on first eight whorls, four in 9-12th whorls, rest of the tail with only paravertebral tubercles except original and regenerated portion of the tail lacking enlarged tubercles (Fig. 19C, E View Figure 19 ). Scales on ventral aspect of tail much larger than those on dorsal aspect, subimbricate, smooth; median series distinctly larger than rest, roughly rectangular; scales on tail base slightly larger than those on mid-body ventrals, smooth, imbricate; a single enlarged, weakly keeled and conical postcloacal spur on each side (Fig. 19D View Figure 19 ).
Colouration in life (Fig. 22).
Dorsum of head, body, limbs and tail base orange. Head with numerous light grey and yellow blotches and fine black spots, light grey and dark bands on labials; indistinct grey postorbital streaks. A single central black dorsal ocellus on neck and a smaller one on occiput separated by a larger light grey blotch, both ocelli with an orange margin. Dorsum with numerous light-grey spots and fine black spots and six light grey vertebral blotches from forelimb insertions to tail base. Dorsum of limbs with yellow reticulation, digits with alternating dark and light bands. Tail grey with an orange regenerated tip. Venter off-white with black speckles, margin of throat strongly marked.
Variation and additional information from type series.
Mensural, meristic and additional character state data for the type series is given in Tables 15 View Table 15 - 17 View Table 17 respectively. There are seven adult male and two adult female specimens ranging in size from 27.9-33.8 mm (Fig. 18B View Figure 18 ). All paratypes resemble holotype except as follows: supranasals in strong contact with each other behind internasal on snout in NRC-AA-1243. Upper postmentals separated from each other below mental by enlarged median chin shield in NRC-AA-1246; upper postmentals bordered by mental, infralabial I, outer postmental, median chin shield, and additionally by a single large chin scale on either side in NRC-AA-1239, NRC-AA-1241, NRC-AA-1245; upper postmental bordered by both infralabial I & II on left and a single large chin scale on either side in NRC-AA-1240, and NRC-AA-1246. Outer postmental bordered by inner postmental, infralabials I & II and additionally, four chin scales on left and three on right side in NRC-AA-1239, NRC-AA-1241, NRC-AA-1244, NRC-AA-1247, four chin scales on either side in NRC-AA-1243; outer postmental bordered by inner postmental, infralabials I (on left), and four chin scales on either side in NRC-AA-1240, NRC-AA-1246; outer postmental separated from each other medially by two enlarged chin scales in NRC-AA-1242, NRC-AA-1243, and NRC-AA-1247. Four paratypes - NRC-AA-1244, NRC-AA-1245, NRC-AA-1246, and NRC-AA-1247 with original and complete tails, slightly longer than body (TL/SVL 1.32, 1.29, 1.29, and 1.19 respectively); NRC-AA-1243 with complete but fully regenerated tail, almost equal to the body (TL/SVL 1.03); NRC-AA-1240 and NRC-AA-1241 with partial but original tail; tail almost entirely lost in NRC-AA-1239 and NRC-AA-1242. Original tail distinctly banded only in two male paratypes - NRC-AA-1240 and NRC-AA-1246 (Fig. 18B View Figure 18 ).
Distribution and Natural history.
Cnemaspis rudhira sp. nov. is known from a broad elevation gradient of ca. 800-1400 m asl. around its type locality, Yercaud, in the Shevaroy hills, Salem district, Tamil Nadu (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 ). The new species was observed to be diurnal, scansorial, and locally highly abundant. At each collection site, many individuals (n =>30) were observed active during the daytime (0900-1430 hrs) on rocks, cement walls, trees, inside cement culverts etc. all below 2-3 m height in moist deciduous to evergreen forest patches (Fig. 22 View Figure 22 ). Individuals of the new species were observed both daytime and at night in large numbers across the elevation gradient, along the ghat road leading to Yercaud town. Sympatric geckos encountered at the locality include Cnemaspis yercaudensis , Cnemaspis thackerayi , Cyrtodactylus (Geckoella) sp. Hemidactylus cf. graniticolus , Hemidactylus leschenaultii , Hemidactylus parvimaculatus , Hemidactylus cf. frenatus , Hemidactylus whitakeri , and Hemiphyllodactylus aurantiacus (Beddome).
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