identifier	taxonID	type	CVterm	format	language	title	description	additionalInformationURL	UsageTerms	rights	Owner	contributor	creator	bibliographicCitation
A71307DDD73F542E837CECD520CBBA45.text	A71307DDD73F542E837CECD520CBBA45.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Scincella jinchuanensis Liu & Pu & Tan & Chen & Cai & Lyu & Shu & Wu & Guo 2026	<div><p>Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov.</p><p>Figs 3, 4, 5, 6</p><p>Type material.</p><p>Holotype. • YBU 22317, male, collected from Jinchuan County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China (31.8213°N, 101.6319°E, 2906 m a. s. l.), in May 2022 .</p><p>Paratypes. • (n = 3). YBU 22316 and YBU 250959, adult males; YBU 22292 adult female. The same locality, date, and collectors as the holotype.</p><p>Diagnoses.</p><p>Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov. exhibits the following characteristics which can distinguish from its congeners. (1) 6 dorsal scale rows between dorsolateral stripes; (2) 28 Midbody scale rows; (3) Lamellae beneath 4 th finger 10–11, beneath 4 th toe 17–18; (4) Supraoculars 4–5; (5) Superciliarys 0–6; (6) Supralabials 7–9; (7) Infralabials 6–8; (8) Paravertebral scales 58–86; (9) Ventral scales 56–64; (10) Its scales are finer than those of other species.</p><p>Description of the holotype.</p><p>YBU 22317, an adult male. The body is slender and medium sized, with a snout-vent length (SVL) of 40.01 mm and tail length (TAL) of 73.59 mm (TAL / SVL 1.84). The neck is indistinct from the head. The nasal scale is rhomboidal, contacting both the first supralabial scale and the rostral scale. Nuchal scales five. The axilla-groin distance (AGD) is 25.26 mm in length (AGD / SVL 0.63). The forelimb length (FLL) is 6.04 mm, and the hindlimb length (HLL) is 10.92 mm. Forelimb digit lengths: IV&gt; III&gt; II&gt; V&gt; I; Hindlimb digit lengths: IV&gt; III&gt; II&gt; V&gt; I. Fingers are slender, F 4 L 2.12 mm, T 4 L 4.65 mm. Subdigital lamellae single, arranged in an overlapping series: F 4 S 11 / 11, T 4 S 18 / 17.</p><p>The rostral is blunt and rounded. Prefrontals 2, rhomboid-shaped, separated by the frontonasal, with the two scales contacting only at a point. Frontoparietals 2, irregularly pentagonal, in contact with each other. Supraoculars 4 / 5. Parietal 1, the largest scale on the dorsal head, pentagonal in shape, with a width approximately two-thirds of its length; its lateral margins contact supraoculars and prefrontals. Five asymmetrical nuchals, arranged in a 2 / 3 pattern, all elongated (approximately three times longer than wide), the first pair largest. The supranasal and postnasals are absent, the ear opening is oval, larger than the palpebral window but smaller than the eye diameter, and the anterior edge of the ear opening lacks flap-like protrusions; the tympanic membrane is recessed. Loreals 2 / 2. The lower eyelid has a distinct transparent disc (window), and both eyelids are accompanied by minute scales. Superciliaris 4 / 0, unilaterally absent superciliary scales. The nasal is oval, the nostril positioned at its center. Supralabials 7 / 7, the first contacts the nasal, 6 th largest. Temporals 4 (3 + 1), upper first row larger and contacts the parietal. Infralabials 7 / 7, slender and elongated, with the first being the smallest. The gulars 25, gular scales relatively small and off-white in color. The mental scale is broad, occupying the anterior edge of the lower jaw; there is one larger postmental. Three pairs of chin shields, the first pair in medial contact, the second and third pairs separated by a small scale.</p><p>Body scales smooth, MBSR 28; dorsal scales widened, larger than the lateral and ventral scales 86, dorsal scales between dorso-lateral stripes 6; ventral scales slightly enlarged medially, decreasing toward the flanks, ventral scales 62 rows; there are two larger preanal scales, overlapped by the lateral precloacals, and the left scale overlaps the right; tail base thick. Limbs pentadactyl, toes not in contact with fingers when limbs adpressed; digits slender.</p><p>Coloration of the holotype in life.</p><p>The dorsal head and tail display a distinct bronze coloration, with a bronze patch extending from the nostril to the eye. All dorsal head scales are smooth and bear black spots. The dorsum is bronze and scattered with black spots. Irregular dark dorsal patterns, formed by melanin-rich scales, are present on the anterior body and tail, including prominent ventrolateral stripes. A continuous lateral stripe runs from behind the eye to the tail base. The ventral side features a silver-gray throat and is otherwise uniformly silver-white, devoid of spots.</p><p>After preservation in formaldehyde and alcohol, the head and dorsum appear uniformly dark brown. The throat and abdomen are bright gray, the limbs are bronze, and the area near the cloaca on the tail is light gray.</p><p>Intraspecific variation.</p><p>The variation of metrical characteristics of the type series is provided in Table 4. The holotype differs from the paratypes by having five supraoculars on one side, while all others have four. Additionally, the holotype lacks superciliaris on one side, a characteristic not observed in the paratypes.</p><p>Etymology.</p><p>The species is named after its type locality in Jinchuan County, Sichuan Province, China. We suggested the common names “ 金川滑蜥 ” in Chinese and “Jinchuan ground skink” in English for this species.</p><p>Distribution and ecology.</p><p>Currently, this species is known only from Jinchuan County, Sichuan, China. The type specimens were collected in late May 2022. They inhabit areas near small shrublands and show a preference for large rocks as shelter. Individuals bask on exposed rock surfaces when these are illuminated by sunlight (Fig. 6). The species occurs sympatrically with Protobothrops jerdonii .</p><p>Comparisons with congeners.</p><p>In addition to its large genetic distances, Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov. can be distinguished from all known congeners based on distinct morphological characters. Notably, it differs from S. heishuiensis, S. tsinlingensis, S. potanini, S. monticola, S. qianica, S. huanrenensis, S. chengduensis, S. fansipanensis, S. liangshanensis, and S. schmidti by having more dorsal scale rows between dorsolateral stripes 1 / 2 + 6 + 1 / 2 (vs. 1 / 2 + 4 + 1 / 2).</p><p>The new species can also be distinguished from S. przewalskii by having 4–5 supraoculars (vs. 3). It is different from S. monticola, S. potanini, S. qianica, and S. doriae by exhibiting 28 midbody scale-row (vs. 23–24 in S. monticola, 24–27 in S. potanini, 26 in S. qianica, 30–32 in S. doriae). Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov. can be differentiated from S. reevesii, S. modesta, S. doriae, S. schmidti, S. barbouri, and S. formosensis by having straight dorso-lateral stripes (vs. wavy). The new species is different from S. heishuiensis, S. potanini, S. monticola, S. schmidti, S. alia, S. qianica, S. chengduensis, S. fansipanensis, and S. liangshanensis by having a greater number of enlarged, undivided lamellae beneath toe IV, 17–18 (vs. 13–14 in S. heishuiensis; 10–13 in S. potanini; 10–12 in S. monticola; 11–12 in S. schmidti; 11–13 in S. alia; 13–14 in S. qianica; 10–12 in S. chengduensis; 10–12 in S. fansipanensis; 10–15 in S. liangshanensis), and further from S. chengduensis by having more gulars 23–25 (vs. 21–22).</p><p>The new species is most similar to S. wangyuezhaoi, but it can be distinguished from S. wangyuezhaoi by having fewer gulars 23–25 (vs. 25–30), a greater number of enlarged, undivided lamellae beneath toe IV (17–18 vs. 14–15), and fewer scale rows covered by dorsolateral stripes (2 vs. 3) (Table 4).</p></div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/A71307DDD73F542E837CECD520CBBA45	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		Pensoft via Plazi	Liu, Fan;Pu, Hongli;Tan, Songwen;Chen, Jiahao;Cai, Bo;Lyu, Bing;Shu, Guocheng;Wu, Yayong;Guo, Peng	Liu, Fan, Pu, Hongli, Tan, Songwen, Chen, Jiahao, Cai, Bo, Lyu, Bing, Shu, Guocheng, Wu, Yayong, Guo, Peng (2026): Two new species of the genus Scincella Mittleman, 1950 (Squamata, Scincidae) from southwestern China. Zoosystematics and Evolution 102 (2): 575-588, DOI: 10.3897/zse.102.184613
6497568BD77A5F1B986804037FA05BFF.text	6497568BD77A5F1B986804037FA05BFF.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Scincella maerkangensis Liu & Pu & Tan & Chen & Cai & Lyu & Shu & Wu & Guo 2026	<div><p>Scincella maerkangensis sp. nov.</p><p>Figs 7, 8, 9, 10</p><p>Type material.</p><p>Holotype. • YBU 250140, adult female, collected from <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=101.1116&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=31.8881" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 101.1116/lat 31.8881)">Maerkang City</a>, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China (31.8881°N, 101.1116°E, 3197 m a. s. l.), in May 2025 .</p><p>Paratypes. • (n = 3). YBU 250143, YBU 250141 adult males; YBU 250139, female. The same locality, date, and collectors as the holotype.</p><p>Diagnoses.</p><p>Scincella maerkangensis sp. nov. exhibits the following characteristics which can distinguish from its congeners: (1) 4 dorsal scale rows between dorsolateral stripes; (2) Midbody scale 24 rows; (3) Lamellae beneath 4 th finger 10–12, beneath 4 th toe 14–15; (4) Supraoculars 4–4; (5) Superciliarys 4–7; (6) Supralabials 7–9; (7) Infralabials 6–8; (8) Paravertebral scale 58–67 rows; (9) Ventral scale 51–61 rows; (10) A longer tail relative (TAL / SVL 1.40).</p><p>Description of the holotype.</p><p>Adult female, SVL 50.18 mm; the tail is longer, TAL 71.90 mm, TAL / SVL 1.43; the limbs are shorter, HLL 9.72 mm on left, HLL / SVL 0.19, FLL 6.42 mm on left side, FLL / SVL 0.13. AGD 29.27 mm, the body is slender, with the limbs adpressed without contact between them. Forelimb digit lengths: IV&gt; III&gt; II&gt; V&gt; I; hindlimb digit lengths: IV&gt; III&gt; II&gt; V&gt; I.</p><p>The snout is wider than it is high, with the dorsal aspect visible and in contact with the first supranasal, nasal, and prenasal scales; it is trapezoidal in shape, with a width approximately twice its height, in contact with rostral, nasals, anterior loreals, prefrontals, and frontal; the supranasal is absent, nasal scales intact, nostrils at bottom; loreals 2–2, the nasal scale is oval, with the nostril located close to the loreal scale, separated from 1 st supralabial by single row of scales on each side. prefrontals 2, in contact with each other anteriorly. bordered by frontal, 2 nd to 4 th supraoculars, frontoparietal, and parietals; frontal slender, longer than wide, diamond-shaped, in contact with the first supraoculars laterally, supraoculars 4–4 with the 2 nd largest; tympanic membrane sunken. Supralabials 8 / 9, the first contacts the nasal, 6 th largest; infralabials 8 / 6, slender and elongated, with the first being the smallest. Five asymmetrical nuchals, arranged in a 2 / 3 pattern, all elongated (approximately three times longer than wide), the first pair largest; lower eyelid bearing an undivided transparent window, surrounded small palpebral scales; temporals 4 (3 + 1), upper first row larger and contacts the parietal; chin shields in three pairs and the third pair separated by three gulars; the gulars 25, gular scales relatively small.</p><p>Body scales smooth, midbody scale-row 24, paravertebral scale-row 60; dorsal scale rows between dorsolateral stripes 1 / 2 + 4 + 1 / 2. ventral scale-row 56, enlarged preanal scale pairs one, median scales overlapping outer scales, tail base thick, gradually tapering from the middle toward the tip. The subcaudals at the base of the tail are nearly equal in size and arranged alternately along the midline; dorsal surface of the fourth finger and toe mostly covered with two rows of supradigital scales, with the terminal two scales arranged in a single row. Subdigital lamellae single, arranged in an overlapping series: enlarged undivided lamellae beneath toe IV 11 / 11, enlarged undivided lamellae beneath toe 14 / 15.</p><p>Coloration of the holotype in life.</p><p>In its wild state, the dorsal surface of the head is copper-colored, scattered with irregular small blackish-brown spots. The upper lateral head is blackish brown, gradually fading to brown below, and speckled with irregular blackish-brown spots. The ventral side of the head is creamy white, with several large blackish-brown spots. The edges of the infralabials, chin shields, and some lateral gular scales are blackish brown, forming approximately several discontinuous longitudinal stripes. The dorsal surface of the body is copper-colored, with three longitudinal stripes composed of continuous but irregular black spots of varying sizes. The lateral stripes are more distinct and continuous, extending from the postocular region to the mid-tail section. The mid-dorsal stripe is discontinuous, composed of black pigmentation on individual scales, and extends only to the base of the tail. The flanks are pale gray in ground color, speckled with minute black spots, while the ventrolateral region exhibits a uniformly distributed blackish-gray hue. The spotting gradually sparse out towards the ventral area and disappears near the mid-venter. The venter is silver-gray with non-overlapping, distinctly keeled scales.</p><p>After preservation in formaldehyde and alcohol, the head and dorsum adopt a uniform brown hue with intensified lateral dark stripes. The dorsum and venter retain smooth integument texture, while the tail is lateral and ventral surfaces develop dark brown to black spotting. Throat and belly bright gray, limbs bronze, and caudal region near the cloaca pale gray.</p><p>Intraspecific variation.</p><p>The paratype differs only slightly from the holotype in several diagnostic characteristics, including MBSR, DBR, and SRB, exhibiting only minor variation in small-scale morphological features. For instance, measurements such as PVSR, VSR, and NU all fall within the normal range of variation.</p><p>Etymology.</p><p>The species is named after its type locality in Maerkang City, Sichuan Province, China. We suggested the common names “ 马尔康滑蜥 ” in Chinese and “Maerkang ground skink” in English for this species.</p><p>Distribution and habitat.</p><p>Currently, this species is known only from Maerkang City. The holotype was collected in late May 2022. Its typical habitat consists of areas adjacent to small shrublands, where individuals use large rocks for shelter and bask on exposed rock surfaces when sunlight is available (Fig. 10). The species occurs sympatrically with Gloydius angusticeps and Protobothrops jerdonii .</p><p>Comparisons with congeners.</p><p>In addition to its large genetic distances, Scincella maerkangensis sp. nov. can be distinguished from all known congeners based on distinct morphological characters. Notably, it differs from Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov., S. barbouri, S. doriae, S. modesta, S. formosensis, S. przewalskii, and S. wangyuezhaoi by having fewer dorsal scale rows between dorsolateral stripes (DBR) 1 / 2 + 4 + 1 / 2 (vs. 1 / 2 + 6 + 1 / 2). It differs from S. reevesii by having fewer DBR 1 / 2 + 4 + 1 / 2 (vs. 1 / 2 + 8 + 1 / 2) (Table 5).</p><p>The new species can also be distinguished from Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov., S. heishuiensis, S. chengduensis, S. qianica, S. alia, and S. doriae by exhibiting 24 midbody scale-row (MBSR) (vs. 28 in Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov., 28 in S. heishuiensis, 23 in S. chengduensis, 26 in S. qianica, 26–28 in S. alia, 30–32 in S. doriae). The new species can be further differentiated from Scincella reevesii, Scincella modesta, Scincella doriae, S. schmidti, S. barbouri, and S. formosensis by the appearance of dorso-lateral stripes, which are straight (vs. wavy). It differs from S. doriae, Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov., and S. schmidti by having 14–15 T 4 S (vs. 11–12 in S. schmidti; 17–18 in Scincella jinchuanensis sp. nov.; 16–18 in S. doriae). It is distinct from S. chengduensis and S. fansipanensis by having more enlarged undivided lamellae beneath finger IV (10–12 vs. 8–9 in S. chengduensis and 7–9 in S. fansipanensis). The new species differs from S. barbouri, S. huanrenensis, and S. tsinlingensis in paravertebral scale-row count (58–67 vs. 70–79 in S. barbouri, 52–60 in S. huanrenensis, and 70–90 in S. tsinlingensis). The new species can be further differentiated from S. chengduensis by a ventral scale-row count of 51–61 (vs. 42–44) and can be distinguished from S. chengduensis by having more gulars 24 (vs. 21–22).</p><p>The new species is most similar to Scincella wangyuezhaoi but can be diagnosed from the latter by its unique ventrolateral coloration (uniformly distributed blackish-gray hue with gradually sparse spotting on the lower body vs. densely covered black spots presenting a uniform grayish-brown appearance across the entire ventrolateral region). Scincella maerkangensis sp. nov. also differs in characteristics of MBSR, DBR, and scale rows covered by dorsolateral stripes (SRB), specifically: MBSR 24 (vs. 27–30), DBR 1 / 2 + 4 + 1 / 2 (vs. 1 / 2 + 6 + 1 / 2), and SRB 1 (vs. 3).</p></div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/6497568BD77A5F1B986804037FA05BFF	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		Pensoft via Plazi	Liu, Fan;Pu, Hongli;Tan, Songwen;Chen, Jiahao;Cai, Bo;Lyu, Bing;Shu, Guocheng;Wu, Yayong;Guo, Peng	Liu, Fan, Pu, Hongli, Tan, Songwen, Chen, Jiahao, Cai, Bo, Lyu, Bing, Shu, Guocheng, Wu, Yayong, Guo, Peng (2026): Two new species of the genus Scincella Mittleman, 1950 (Squamata, Scincidae) from southwestern China. Zoosystematics and Evolution 102 (2): 575-588, DOI: 10.3897/zse.102.184613
