Species descriptions of reptiles historically have relied exclusively on the use of morphological data; however, these external, phenotypic data do not always co-vary with lineage divergence. Consequently, it has become increasingly clear that species diversity has been underestimated in many evolutionary radiations. With the use of an integrative approach, we examined the genetic and morphological diversity present in a nearly endemic Philippine...

Asian leaf-litter toads of the genus Leptobrachella represent a great anuran diversification in Asia. Previous studies have suggested that the diversity of this genus is still underestimated. During herpetological surveys from 2013 to 2018, a series of Leptobrachella specimens were collected from the international border areas in the southern and western parts of Yunnan Province, China. Subsequent analyses based on morphological and...

Recognizing species-level diversity is important for studying evolutionary patterns across biological disciplines and is critical for conservation efforts. However, challenges remain in delimiting species-level diversity, especially in cryptic radiations where species are genetically divergent but show little morphological differentiation. Using multilocus molecular data, phylogenetic analyses, species delimitation analyses, and morphological data, we examine lineage diversification in a cryptic radiation of Riopa skinks...

Falcaustra samarensis n. sp. (Ascaridida, Kathlaniidae) from the intestines of Megophrys stejnegeri Taylor 1920 (Anura, Megophryidae) is described and illustrated. Falcaustra samarensis n. sp. represents the one hundred fourth species assigned to the genus and the thirty-seventh Oriental species. It is distinguished from other Oriental species by the pattern of caudal papillae (8 precloacal, 2 adcloacal, 10 postcloacal, and 1 median), length...

Although recent studies have made considerable progresses on the taxonomy of the genus Diploderma, there are still many questionable records of Diploderma species in China. Among these are suspicious sympatric distributions of congeners, locality records that fall well outside the recognized range of a given species, and records that are in zoogeographic regions distinct from those of the type localities. Combining both...

An integrative taxonomic analysis of the Ptychozoon lionotum group across its range in Indochina and Sundaland recovers P. lionotum sensu lato Annandale, 1905 as paraphyletic with respect to P. popaense Grismer, Wood, Thura, Grismer, Brown, & Stuart, 2018a and composed of four allopatric, genetically divergent, ND2 mitochondrial lineages. Multivariate and univariate analyses of continuous and discrete morphological and color pattern characters statistically...

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Despite its recognition since the early 1900s, the agamid lizard Pseudocalotes austeniana remains known based on 3 vouchered specimens only from the East Himalaya, and little is known about its general biology. During herpetological surveys of Tibet, China, we collected 3 specimens of P. austeniana from Medog County, southeastern Tibet, including the first juvenile specimen ever vouchered. We provide a detailed description...

Two new species of the gekkonid lizard genus Hemiphyllodactylus are described based on specimens collected from Champasak Province in southern Laos and Houaphanh Province in northern Laos. Phylogenetic analyses recover H. indosobrinus sp. nov. from Champasak Province as the sister lineage to the Thai endemic H. flaviventris. Hemiphyllodactylus indosobrinus sp. nov. can be diagnosed by having 15 supralabial scales, eight chin scales,...

Despite being recognized as ecologically and biogeographically important, the biodiversity of the Hengduan Mountain Region, particularly along the upper Mekong River, remains poorly understood. Here we describe a new species of Mountain Dragon of the genus Japalura sensu lato Gray, 1853 from the headwater region of the Mekong River in Chamdo, Tibet Autonomous Region, China. The species is recognized as a member...

Regions with complex geological histories often have diverse and highly endemic biotas, yet inferring the ecological and historical processes shaping this relationship remains challenging. Here, in the context of the taxon cycle model of insular community assembly,we investigate patterns of lineage diversity and habitat usage in a newly characterized vertebrate radiation centred upon the world’s most geologically complex insular region: island arcs...