taxonID	type	description	language	source
539F04823A7F5AB6A107773AD04F66F7.taxon	etymology	Etymology. The specific epithet maculosa is the feminine nominative singular of the Latin adjective maculosus (“ spotted, blotched ”), chosen to agree in gender with the feminine generic name Plagiopholis. It refers to the distinctive series of irregular blotches along the dorsum of the new species.	en	Qi, Shuo, Song, Han-Ming, Yang, Hao-Cong, Xu, Yu-Hao, Fang, Rui-Jian, Su, Jun-Rong, Liu, Zhi-Fa, Gong, Yue-Ning, Li, Fang-Hua, Lyu, Chun-He, Wang, Bing-Yang, Wang, Ying-Yong (2025): A new species of Plagiopholis Boulenger, 1893 (Serpentes, Pseudoxenodontidae) from Guangdong, China. Zoosystematics and Evolution 101 (4): 2171-2180, DOI: 10.3897/zse.101.172706
539F04823A7F5AB6A107773AD04F66F7.taxon	diagnosis	Diagnosis. Plagiopholis maculosa sp. nov. can be differentiated from its congeners by the combination of the following morphological characters: (1) no loreal; (2) temporals 2 + 2; (3) maxillary teeth 17 in a single female; (4) 104 ventrals, excluding two preventrals in a single female; (5) 24 pairs of subcaudals, excluding tail tip in a single female; (6) presence of a large inverted “ V ” - shaped nuchal blotch; (7) dorsal surface of the body reddish-brown, with large black-brown spots scattered along the sides; the scales between these lateral spots have white margins, while the anterior and posterior adjacent scales are darker with black-brown edges, together forming irregular blotches along the dorsum.	en	Qi, Shuo, Song, Han-Ming, Yang, Hao-Cong, Xu, Yu-Hao, Fang, Rui-Jian, Su, Jun-Rong, Liu, Zhi-Fa, Gong, Yue-Ning, Li, Fang-Hua, Lyu, Chun-He, Wang, Bing-Yang, Wang, Ying-Yong (2025): A new species of Plagiopholis Boulenger, 1893 (Serpentes, Pseudoxenodontidae) from Guangdong, China. Zoosystematics and Evolution 101 (4): 2171-2180, DOI: 10.3897/zse.101.172706
539F04823A7F5AB6A107773AD04F66F7.taxon	description	Description of holotype. Adult female (Figs 3 – 5 A, 6 A). Body size small and stubby, TL 295.9 mm (SVL 261.4 mm, TaL 34.5 mm), tail short (TaL / TL: 0.12). Head small, indistinct from neck, longer than width and narrow anteriorly, HL 13.3 mm, HW 8.4 mm (HW / HL: 0.63); eye relative moderate, ED 2.4 mm (ED / HL: 0.18), pupil round. Rostral triangular, much wider than high, visible from dorsum; nostril laterally pointed, located in the middle of nasal; nasal divided into two scales by nostril; no loreal; postnasal in contact with one enlarged preocular; two postoculars, upper one larger than the lower; two anterior temporals and two posterior temporals on each side; six supralabials on each side, first and second in contact with nasal, fourth and fifth entering the orbit, the sixth largest; two pairs of chin shields, elongate, the anterior pair in contact with the mental and slightly longer than posterior one; six infralabials on each side, first to third in contact with anterior pair of chin shields, third and forth in contact with posterior chin shields; internasals and prefrontals paired; frontal single and enlarged, narrowed posteriorly; parietals paired, longer than width, in contact with each other medially, with upper anterior and posterior temporals laterally. Dorsal scales in 15 – 15 – 15 rows, smooth throughout, without apical pits, the outermost dorsal scale rows are enlarged and significantly differ in size from adjacent scales; 104 ventrals, excluding two preventrals; 24 pairs of subcaudals, excluding tail tip; precloacal plate entire.	en	Qi, Shuo, Song, Han-Ming, Yang, Hao-Cong, Xu, Yu-Hao, Fang, Rui-Jian, Su, Jun-Rong, Liu, Zhi-Fa, Gong, Yue-Ning, Li, Fang-Hua, Lyu, Chun-He, Wang, Bing-Yang, Wang, Ying-Yong (2025): A new species of Plagiopholis Boulenger, 1893 (Serpentes, Pseudoxenodontidae) from Guangdong, China. Zoosystematics and Evolution 101 (4): 2171-2180, DOI: 10.3897/zse.101.172706
539F04823A7F5AB6A107773AD04F66F7.taxon	distribution	Distribution and ecology. Plagiopholis maculosa sp. nov. is currently known only from Tianjingshan National Forest Park, Nanling National Nature Reserve, Ruyuan County, Shaoguan City, Guangdong Province, China. The holotype was discovered at approximately 9: 00 a. m. in a roadside ditch within evergreen broad-leaved forest at an elevation of ca. 680 m. The forest is characterized by dense canopy cover, abundant leaf litter, and a moist microenvironment typical of the Nanling Mountains region.	en	Qi, Shuo, Song, Han-Ming, Yang, Hao-Cong, Xu, Yu-Hao, Fang, Rui-Jian, Su, Jun-Rong, Liu, Zhi-Fa, Gong, Yue-Ning, Li, Fang-Hua, Lyu, Chun-He, Wang, Bing-Yang, Wang, Ying-Yong (2025): A new species of Plagiopholis Boulenger, 1893 (Serpentes, Pseudoxenodontidae) from Guangdong, China. Zoosystematics and Evolution 101 (4): 2171-2180, DOI: 10.3897/zse.101.172706
