Amolops dafangensis wumengmontis Huang, Yuan & Liu, 2025

Li, Pengying, Li, Jiangyu, Zhang, Wei, Yi, Xiangbo, Yuan, Zhiyong, Huang, Junkai & Liu, Xiaolong, 2025, Integrated evidence reveals a new subspecies of Amolops Cope, 1865 (Anura, Ranidae) from northeastern Yunnan, China, ZooKeys 1257, pp. 39-54 : 39-54

Amolops dafangensis wumengmontis Huang, Yuan & Liu ssp. nov.

Figs 3 , 5 ; Table 2

Holotype.

• SWU 007379 , adult male (Fig. 3 ), collected in July 2021 by Xiaolong Liu and Rui Chen from Wumeng Mountain National Nature Reserve , Zhaotong City, northeastern Yunnan, China ( 27.810588°N, 104.266768°E; 1915 m a. s. l.) (Fig. 4 ).

Paratypes.

• Two adult males ( SWU 0009561 , SWU 0009562 ) were collected at Wumeng Mountain National Nature Reserve , Zhaotong City, northeastern Yunnan, China ( 28.213406°N, 103.935201°E; elevation 1797 m a. s. l.) in November 2023 by Xiaolong Liu and Rui Chen . • One adult female ( SWU 007381 ) was collected at the same locality as the holotype in July 2021 by Xiaolong Liu and Rui Chen .

Etymology.

The specific epithet “ wumengmontis ” is derived from the type locality, Wumeng Mountain National Nature Reserve, Zhaotong City, northeastern Yunnan, China. We suggest ‘ Wumeng Cascade Frog’ as its English common name, and ‘ Dà Fāng Tuān Wā Wū Mēng Yà Zhŏng’ (大方湍蛙乌蒙亚种) as its Chinese common name.

Diagnosis.

Amolops dafangensis wumengmontis ssp. nov. was classified within the genus Amolops and further assigned to the A. mantzorum group due to the combination of following features: 1) moderate body size, with a SVL of 43.0– 45.5 mm in adult males ( N = 3) and 62.1 mm in adult female ( N = 1); 2) presence of vomerine teeth; 3) slightly longer head length compared to head width; 4) indistinct tympanum; 5) lack of webbing or lateral fringes on fingers, as well as absence of lateral fringes on toes; 6) maxillary glands extremely indistinct, appearing as three small clusters; 7) presence of supratympanic folds and dorsolateral folds formed by a series of glands; 8) tibiotarsal articulation reaching the anterior corner of the eye; 9) heels overlapping when hindlimbs flexed at right angles to the body axis; and 10) absence of vocal sacs in males, with nuptial pads featuring velvety white nuptial spines at the base of finger I.

Description of holotype.

Adult male, body size moderate ( SVL = 45.5 mm) with a head length slightly surpassing head width ( HDL / HDW = 1.2). The snout is moderately rounded, the canthus rostralis is well-defined and curved, while the loreal region slopes concavely. The nostrils are circular, positioned between the snout and eyes, and slightly protruding. The eyes are large ( ED / SL = 0.8), the internarial distance exceeds the interorbital distance ( IND / IOD = 1.1), and the width of the upper eyelid is slightly narrower than the interorbital distance ( UEW / IOD = 0.9). A discernible pineal spot is present, the pupil is round and horizontally oriented, and the mouth corner is smooth. The tympanum is indistinct, with maxillary glands appearing extremely indistinct, resembling three small clusters. There is an indistinct supratympanic fold, vomerine teeth were observed, choanae are round, the tongue is anteriorly attached and cordiform, with a notched posterior margin, and a vocal sac is notably absent.

The forelimbs are robust, with the relative length order of fingers being I <II <IV <III; all fingers are expanded into discs, with circummarginal grooves present on all except finger I. There is no webbing or lateral fringes on the fingers. Nuptial pads featuring velvety white nuptial spines are located at the base of finger I. Webbing between the fingers is absent. The subarticular tubercles are distinct and rounded, supernumerary tubercles are present, and both the inner and outer metacarpal tubercles are flat and indistinct.

The hindlimbs are elongated, nearly twice the snout-vent length ( HLL / SVL = 1.8), with the tibiotarsal articulation reaching the anterior corner of the eye. When the hindlimbs are flexed at right angles to the body axis, the heels overlap. The tibia length exceeds the combined lengths of the forearm and hand ( TBL / FAHL = 1.2). The relative length order of the toes is I <II <III <V <IV, with all toe tips expanded into discs bearing circummarginal grooves. Well-developed webbing is present between the toes, covering two-thirds of the interdigital spaces, following the webbing formula: I 1–1 II 1 – 1 ½ III 1 – 2 IV 2 – 1 V. There are no lateral fringes on the toes. The subarticular tubercles are distinct, the inner metatarsal tubercle is rounded, and the outer metatarsal tubercle is absent. Supernumerary tubercles were not observed.

Skin on the dorsum and dorsal surfaces of limbs is smooth. Weak dorsolateral folds, formed by a series of glands and appearing as incomplete lines (glandular dorsolateral folds), extend from above the shoulder to the vent. Weak dorsolateral glandular lines are present. Prominent folds are noticeable around the anus.

Coloration of the holotype in life. In the holotype specimen observed in life (see Fig. 3 ), the iris appears black with a brown wash. The dorsal surface exhibits a golden-brown color with rounded black-brown and green spots. A pale green, irregular stripe runs from the snout to the vent along the flank of the body. The temporal region is characterized by black-brown hues interspersed with green and golden-brown spots. The chest and abdomen are predominantly white with pale brown markings. The ventral surface of the forelimbs displays a light brown coloration with green spots on the outer side and white on the inner side, while all the discs are yellow-green. The webbing between the toes and the ventral surface of the hindlimbs presents a yellow coloration.

Coloration of the holotype in preservative. After preservation in alcohol, the coloration of the specimen has faded, although the general pattern remains unchanged. Dorsal color has transitioned to a grey-blue and dark brown hue, while the ventral surface has faded to a milky white shade. The webbing between the toes and the ventral surface of the hindlimbs has also faded to a brown color (Fig. 5 ).

Sexual dimorphism.

Males exhibit a smaller size compared to females; they are devoid of vocal sacs, and nuptial pads featuring velvety white nuptial spines are present at the base of finger I.

Variation.

All specimens displayed a high degree of morphological similarity; there was variability in the coloration among live individuals (Fig. 6 ).

Distribution and ecology.

This species is currently known to be distributed only in stream areas above 1500 m elevation in the Wumeng Mountains (Yongshan County, Yiliang County) (Fig. 7 ). This species is sympatric with Leptobrachium boringii (Liu, 1945) and Odorrana margaretae (Liu, 1950) . The male individuals collected in July had nuptial pads, but no tadpoles or amplexus behaviors were observed, indicating an early stage of the breeding season.

Comparisons.

Instead of comparing the new subspecies of A. dafangensis to all known Amolops , our focus is on the morphological distinctions in comparison to phylogenetically closely related taxa, specifically A. dafangensis dafangensis ( Li et al. 2024) in the A. mantzorum group (Table 4 ). The new subspecies resembles A. dafangensis dafangensis in the following morphological characteristics: 1) moderate body size, with a SVL of 43.0– 45.5 mm in adult males ( N = 3); 2) slightly longer head length compared to head width; 3) absence of vocal sacs in males, with nuptial pads featuring velvety white nuptial spines at the base of finger I; 4) presence of vomerine teeth; and 5) presence of supratympanic folds and dorsolateral folds formed by a series of glands. However, the new subspecies can be distinguished from A. dafangensis dafangensis based on the following morphological characteristics: 1) indistinct tympanum (vs. distinct tympanum); 2) tibiotarsal articulation extending just to the anterior corner of the eye (vs. extending far beyond the tip of the snout); 3) flat and indistinct inner and outer metacarpal tubercles (vs. oval inner metacarpal tubercle and small, round outer metacarpal tubercles); and 4) webbing formula: I 1–1 II 1 – 1 ½ III 1 – 2 IV 2 – 1 V (vs. webbing formula: I 1–1 II 1 – 1 ½ III 1 – 2 ½ IV 2 ½ – 1 V).

Figures

Figure 3. Holotype SWU 007379 of A. d. wumengmontis ssp. nov. in situ.

Figure 4. Distribution localities of A. d. wumengmontis ssp. nov. in Wumeng Mountains, northeastern Yunnan, China.

Figure 5. Holotype SWU 007379 of A. d. wumengmontis ssp. nov. in preservative.

Figure 6. Different coloration of A. d. wumengmontis ssp. nov. A. Tissue ID: Yuan 30621; B. SWU 007381; C. SWU 009561; D. SWU 0009562.

Figure 7. Habitat of A. d. wumengmontis ssp. nov. at the type locality, Wumeng Mountain National Nature Reserve, Zhaotong City, northeastern Yunnan, China.