Sitana ponticeriana Cuvier, 1829

Thasun Amarasinghe, A. A., Ineich, Ivan, Suranjan Karunarathna, D. M. S., Botejue, W. Madhava S. & Campbell, Patrick D., 2015, Two new species of the genus Sitana Cuvier, 1829 (Reptilia: Agamidae) from Sri Lanka, including a taxonomic revision of the Indian Sitana species, Zootaxa 3915 (1), pp. 67-98 : 84-87

Sitana ponticeriana Cuvier, 1829

( Figs. 7 , 8 ; Tables 1 , 2 , 4 )

Semiophorus pondiceriana— Wagler, 1830.

Semiophorus pondicerianus — Wiegmann, 1834. Sitana minor Günther, 1864 .

Sitana ponticeriana ponticeriana — Deraniyagala (1953) [Partim]

Lectotype [designated by Duméril & Bibron (1837)]: Male, MNHN 6901, SVL 47.5 mm, collected at Pondichéry (now Puducherry, Tamil Nadu State, India) by Leschenault between 1816 and 1822. Note. The original type series (in which we include only two syntypes) is available at MNHN. Among them Duméril & Bibron (1837) implicitly designated MNHN 6901 as the lectotype (see Brygoo, 1988).

Paralectotype. Male, MNHN 6902, SVL 54.0 mm, Genji, Coromandel, coll. Hope.

Other Specimens examined. Males, ZMB 44106–7, SVL respectively 50.0 mm, 47.0 mm, Pondichéry, India, coll. F. H. Remani, 12 November 1971; Male, BMNH 1946.8.27.42 (now lectotype of S. minor ), SVL 53 mm, Madras (now Chennai, Tamil Nadu State), India, presented by T. C. Jerdon; Male, MNHN 1902.0151, SVL 46 mm, Genji, Coromandel, coll. Maindron.

Diagnosis for adult males. Sitana ponticeriana differs from all congeners by having the following characters: S. bahiri sp. nov.: snout longer ES 61.5–68.1% of HW (vs. shorter, ES 54.7–57.4% of HW), throat-fan longer ADW 31.1–54.7% of AG (vs. shorter, ADW 28.3–29.2% of AG), femur longer FEL 80.0–84.8% of TBL (vs. shorter, 70.6–75.3% of TBL), ventral scales 65–69 (vs. 87–89), breeding-males with bright red colour patch (vs. bleached orange colour patch); S. devakai sp. nov.: femur longer FEL 80.0–84.8% of TBL (vs. shorter, FEL 72.2–78.4% of TBL), ventral scales 65–69 (vs. 100–108), abdominal scales rounded (vs. pointed); S. deccanensis : smaller SVL 48.0–49.0 mm (vs. larger SVL above 60.0 mm), snout longer ES 61.5–68.1% of HW (vs. shorter, ES 53.1–53.4% of HW), throat-fan shorter ADW 31.1–54.7% of AG (vs. longer, ADW 50.3–60.2% of AG), foot longer FOL 150.9–175.5% of HL (vs. shorter, FOL 131.9–144.6% of HL), supralabials 8–10 (vs. 12), midbody scale rows 66–70 (vs. 50–54), ventral scales 65–69 (vs. 82–92), enlarged scales above the tympanum present (vs. absent), unequal and irregular lateral scales with intermediate enlarged scales (vs. equal and regular lateral scales without enlarged scales), breeding-males with bright red colour patch restricted to mid throat-fan (vs. bright red patch extending to vent); Sitana sivalensis complex: throat-fan extending up to the abdomen (vs. not extending to the level of the axilla), foot longer FOL 150.9–175.5% of HL (vs. shorter, FOL 120.0–144.3% of HL).

Description of the lectotype (MNHN 6901). An adult male, 47.5 mm SVL; head moderately large (HL 27.4% of SVL), elongate (HW 63.2% of HL), narrow (HW 17.3% of SVL), distinct from neck; snout elongate (ES 63.5% of HW); snout length greater than eye diameter (ED 70.4% of ES); interorbital distance broad (IO 19.3% of HL); eye large (ED 28.3% of HL); pupil rounded; ear-opening shallow, its greatest diameter being dorsoventral, earopening with enlarged unkeeled scales anteriorly but not posteriorly, tympanum smaller than orbit ( TYD 39.0% of ED); no spines above the tympanum but an enlarged keeled scale above the tympanum separated from the tympanum by two smaller scale rows; diameter of eyes larger than eye to ear distance (ED 101.0% of TYE); forehead concave; scales on snout keeled, smaller than those of occipital region; scales on interorbital and supercilium area keeled; no nuchal or dorsal crest; rostral scale width greater than height, ventro-posteriorly in contact with first supralabial, in contact posteriorly with the prenasal and three equal sized postrostral scales; nostrils rounded located in the middle of an undivided nasal plate; canthus rostralis and superciliary edges sharp; parietal plate lozenge shaped (anterior sides shorter than posterior sides) including a grey-blue coloured “pineal eye”; parietal plate larger than adjacent plates. Mental subtriangular, lengthen posteriorly, approximately equal in length and width, two enlarged postmentals laterally situated and separated by a smaller scale preventing contact between them; each postmental pair bordered posteriorly by four (in left side) and five (in right side) smooth scales including the medial scale, but exclusive of infralabial. Throat-fan medium sized, posterior scales reaching mid venter (DWL 58.5% of SVL, ADW 46.5% of AG), margin of the anterior part of the throat-fan covered with smooth, overlapping, bluntly pointed scales, posterior part (from the middle of the throat to the midventer) with long and elongate lanceolate bluntly pointed scales; throat scales rounded, smooth and overlapping; three scale rows separate orbit from supralabials; supralabials 9 (6th in mid orbit position); infralabials 9, decreasing in size towards gape; scales on the throat-fan smooth but adjacent ventral scales strongly keeled and mucronate, overlapping.

Body slender (AG 43.2% of SVL); mid dorsal scales equal, keeled, elongate with pointed dorsal scales at midbody, keels straight, forming longitudinal, continuous parallel ridges; scales on dorsum at midbody larger than those of venter at same level; lateral body scales unequal, irregular, keeled, mucronate, smaller than dorsals and with randomly distributed enlarged, mucronate, keeled scales; upper dorsolateral scales directed upwards and backwards, dorsoventral ones directed downwards and backwards; 54 scales around midbody; pectoral scales enlarged, keeled, mucronate, elongate and overlapping; abdominal scales short and rounded; ventral keels forming regular parallel and continuous ridges; no preanal or femoral pores. Ventrals 67.

Upper arm longer than lower arm (UAL 20.5% of SVL; LAL 15.8% of SVL); femur shorter than tibia (FEL 27.5% of SVL; TBL 34.4% of SVL; FEL 80.0% of TBL). Dorsal scales on fore and hind limbs not enlarged, keeled, overlapping, and mucronate; ventral scales on upper and lower arm not enlarged, keeled, overlapping, and mucronate; scales on dorsal and ventral surface of thigh keeled, overlapping and mucronate; keels on dorsal and ventral arm and foot forming a series of continuous parallel ridges. Digits elongate, slender, all bearing slightly recurved claws; claws are sharp and elongate; subdigital lamellae entire and mucronate, 15 subdigital lamellae on the toe III, and 24 on toe IV; inter-digital webbing absent; relative length of fingers 3> 4> 2> 5> 1, and toes 4> 3> 2> 1.

Tail incomplete (broken); tail base swollen, ventral scales on tail base keeled (distal part of its tail which is still coloured clearly shows stronger keels than proximal part on ventral tail scales), dorsal scales on tail keeled, elongate, overlapping, directed backwards, keels forming continuous parallel ridges; entire tail with subcaudals on median row not enlarged, keeled, not mucronate, overlapping.

Colour in preserved specimen. Upper head and back cream to light brownish with five pairs of dark edged rhomboidal spots, the back is bordered on each side with a brownish ventrolateral band spotted with whitish dots. In the middle of the back are five rhomboidal spots which are more or less clearly separated medially by a lighter band formed by one or two vertebral scale rows. The first dark blotch is located in front of anterior members, the second behind anterior members, the third in the middle of the back, the fourth in front of posterior members, and the fifth between posterior members; a light streak runs from the nasal below the eye, over the tympanum to the forelimb; lower parts, including the throat-fan whitish or light greyish to cream. A dark brown, wing shaped band is clearly visible on the head between the eyes; claws being dorsally dark brown and ventrally yellowish.

Colour in life. No live population observed. See following corresponding figures in Manthey (2010: 152): RA04141-2.

Variation in other specimens from the type locality. Eight infralabials in both sides; 50 and 53 scales around midbody; respectively 69 and 65 ventral scales in ZMB 44106 and ZMB 44107; subdigital lamellae on the toe III, 11 in ZMB 44106 and toe IV, 20–21 in both ZMB specimens; ventral scales on tail base keeled.

Suggested common names. English name: Pondichéry Fan-throated Lizard, French name: Sitane de Pondichéry.

Distribution. See map Fig. 9 . South-eastern India, recorded from Pondichéry, Madras (=Chennai) and Genji, Coromandel Coast.

Figures

FIGURE 7. Sitana ponticeriana Cuvier, 1829 lectotype (MNHN 6901) (A) dorsal view of head; (B) lateral view of head; (C) ventral head view; (D) ventral view of thigh and tail base; (E) Sitana minor Günther, 1864 lectotype (BMNH 1946.8.27.42) (photo: I. Ineich).

FIGURE 8. Sitana deccanensis syntype (BMNH 1946.8.27.39) (A) lateral body scales; (B) pectoral scales; (C) abdominal scales; Sitana ponticeriana lectotype (MNHN 6901) (D) lateral body scales; (E) pectoral scales; (F) abdominal scales (illustrated by A. A. T. Amarasinghe).

FIGURE 9. Distribution map of S. ponticeriana (yellow), S. deccanensis (green), Sitana cf. devakai (purple), S. cf. ponticeriana (orange), Sitana sivalensis complex (grey), S. bahiri sp. nov. (blue); S. devakai sp. nov. (black); and S. ponticeriana mucronata (red). Holotype locality of each Sri Lankan species marked with squares.