Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis Li, Liu, Yang, Wei, & Su, 2022

Li, Shize, Liu, Jing, Yang, Guiping, Wei, Gang & Su, Haijun, 2022, A new toad species of the genus Brachytarsophrys Tian & Hu, 1983 (Anura, Megophryidae) from Guizhou Province, China, Biodiversity Data Journal 10, pp. 79984-79984 : 79984

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis Li, Liu, Yang, Wei, & Su sp. n.

Materials

Type status: Holotype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Jing Liu ; individualID: CIB LB20210806054; individualCount: 1; sex: male; lifeStage: adult; Taxon : scientificName: Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis; kingdom: Animalia ; phylum: Chordata ; class: Amphibia ; order: Anura ; family: Megophryidae ; genus: Brachytarsophrys ; Location : higherGeography: South-western China; country: China; stateProvince: Guizhou Province; county: Libo County; municipality: Qiannan Autonomous Prefecture ; locality: Changniu Village ; verbatimElevation: 1190; verbatimCoordinates: 25.572492°N, 108.274189°E; georeferenceSources: georeferenceSources; Identification : identifiedBy: Shize Li ; Event : eventDate: 06/08/2021; Record Level: type: Even Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Jing Liu ; individualID: CIB LB20210806055-57; individualCount: 3; sex: 3 females; lifeStage: adul; Taxon : scientificName: Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis; kingdom: Animalia ; phylum: Chordata ; class: Amphibia ; order: Anura ; family: Megophryidae ; subgenus: Brachytarsophrys ; Location : higherGeography: South-western China; country: China; stateProvince: Guizhou Province; county: Libo County; municipality: Qiannan Autonomous Prefecture ; locality: Changniu Village ; verbatimCoordinates: 25.572492°N, 108.274189°E; georeferenceSources: Google Earth ; Identification : identifiedBy: Shize Li ; Event : eventDate: 06/08/2021; Record Level: type: Even

Diagnosis

Morphometric measurements for specimens examined are given in Table 2 and Suppl. material 1. See Fig. 2 A-E for dorsal and ventral view of body, dorsal and ventral view of hand and ventral view of foot.

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. could be distinguished from its congeners by a combination of the following morphological characters: (1) body size small (SVL 70.1 mm in male and 80.1 - 84.9 mm in females); (2) tongue pyriform, feebly notched posteriorly; (3) tibiotarsal articulation reaching to commissure of jaw when leg stretched forward; (4) toes about one third to two thirds webbed in males; (5) male with a single subgular vocal sac and a brown nuptial pad present on the dorsal surface of the first finger.

Description of holotype

An adult male, SVL 70.1 mm; head enormous, extremely depressed, about 1.7 times as broad as long; snout short, rounded in dorsal view, slightly protruding beyond margin of lower jaw; canthus rostralis indistinct; loreal region very oblique, slightly concave; nostril closing to the tip of snout; tympanum not obvious; eye large, eye diameter 31 % of head length; maxillary teeth present, vomerine teeth present on two vomerine ridges; tongue pyriform, notched posteriorly.

Fore-limbs short and moderately robust, the length of lower arm and hand 42 % of SVL; fingers rather short without web, relative finger lengths: I <II <V <III; tips of digits round, feebly dilated; lateral fringes absent; metacarpal tubercle two, inner one significantly enlarged, outer one slightly enlarged.

Hind-limbs relatively short and robust, heels not meeting when thighs are positioned at right angles to the body, tibiotarsal articulation reaching to commissure of jaw when leg stretched forward; tibia length longer than thigh length; relative toe lengths I <II <V <III <IV; tips of toes round, slightly dilated; toes about one third to two thirds webbed and lateral fringe wide, the webbing formula is I (1) - (2+) II (2-) - (3-) III ( 2½) - (4-) IV (4++) - (2-) V; inner metatarsal tubercle oval-shaped; outer metatarsal tubercle absent.

Dorsal skin rough, several conical tubercles scattered on flank of trunk, dorsum of body and limbs; upper eyelid with several tubercles and one enlarged to form horn; tubercles on the dorsum forming a U-marking on the anterior dorsum; a dark brown streak on dorsum of head and between the eyes; supratympanic fold distinct, from posterior corner of eye to a level above the shoulder.

Ventral surface smooth; pectoral gland distinct, closer to axilla than to mid-ventral line; rear of thigh with a small femoral gland, around which densely arranged granules forming a granular patch.

Colouration of holotype in life: Dorsal brown, a dark brown streak on dorsum of head and between the eyes; dark tubercles present on the dorsum, forming a U-marking, some dark tubercles scattered on the shoulder and posterior dorsum, flank of body scattered with some light brown tubercles; upper lip light brown; tympanic region brown; dorsal digits with dark brown transverse bands and three transverse skin ridges on the dorsal shank and thigh; ventral surface brown-black, pectoral gland yellowish; several yellowish spots on two sides of belly; lower surface of digits purple-grey; webs, palms and soles purple-grey; tip of digits, two metacarpal tubercle and inner metatarsal tubercle grey-white; nuptial pad brown; the tubercles at upper eyelid yellowish; pupils black; iris brownish.

Colouration of holotype in preservation: Colour of dorsal surface fades to pale brown; ventral surface brown; the posterior of ventral surface of body; tip of digits, two metacarpal tubercles and inner metatarsal tubercle grey-white fades to white (Fig. 3 ).

Variation: Measurements of the type series are shown in Suppl. material 1. In this new species, the females had larger bodies than male (Table 2 ). In life, the diagnostic morphological characters of all paratypes were identical to those of the holotype (Fig. 4 ). However, colouration and stripe patterns differed amongst individuals. In CIB LB20210806055, the brown patches on dorsum are irregular (Fig. 4 A), in the ventral surface, some dark tubercles on the throat and the tubercles on the thigh are white (Fig. 4 B); in CIB LB20210806056, the brown patches forming an X-marking on the dorsum (Fig. 4 C) and the colouration of ventral surface is lighter (Fig. 4 D).

Secondary sexual characters: The adult male with a single subgular vocal sac and brown nuptial pad present on the dorsal surface of the first finger (Fig. 2 C).

Advertisement call: The call description is based on recordings of the holotype CIB LB20210806054 (Fig. 5 ), calling from beneath a large stone in a streamlet and the ambient air temperature was 18.0°C. Each call consists of 16 - 20 (mean 17.3.5 ± 2.3, n = 3) notes. Call duration was 7690-11330 ms (mean 9068 ± 1974, n = 3). Call interval was 10980-15670 ms (mean 13325 ± 3316, n = 2). Each note had a duration of 129-348 ms (mean 249 ± 36, n = 52) and the intervals between notes 180-395 ms (mean 269 ± 42, n = 49). Amplitude modulation within the note was apparent, beginning with moderately high energy pulses, increasing slightly to a maximum by approximately mid-note and then decreasing towards the end of each note. The average dominant frequency was 1740 ± 168 Hz (1640 - 2330 Hz, n = 3).

Comparisons

Comparative data of Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. with other seven recognised congeners of Brachytarsophrys are given in Suppl. material 2

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. differs from B. orientalis by having a smaller body size, SVL 70.1 mm in male and 80.1 - 84.9 mm in females (vs. 76.8 - 82.7 mm in males, n = 7 and 88.6 mm in female); different webbing formula I (1) - (2+) II (2-) -(3-) III ( 2½) - (4-) IV (4++) - (2-) V in male and I ( 1½) - (2+) II (2-) - (3+) III ( 2½) - (4) IV (4++) - (2) V in female (vs. I ( 1½) - (2) II ( 1½) - (3) III ( 2½) - (4) IV (4) - (2) V in male and I (2) - (2+) II (1⅔) - (3) III (3-) - (4) IV (4+) -( 2½) V in female); the male specimen with a brown nuptial pad present on the dorsal surface of the first finger (vs. dark brown nuptial pads present on the dorsal surface of the first two fingers)( Li et al. 2020).

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. differs from B. popei by having tongue feebly notched posteriorly (vs. deeply notched behind); nuptial pad of the male without spines on the dorsal surface of the first finger (vs. with black nuptial spines present on the dorsal bases of the first two fingers); webbing formula I (1) - (2+) II (2-) - (3-) III ( 2½) - (4-) IV (4++) - (2-) V in male and I ( 1½) - (2+) II (2-) - (3+) III ( 2½) - (4) IV (4++) - (2) V in female (vs. I ( 1½) - (2) II ( 1½) - (3) III ( 2½) - (3⅔) IV (3⅔) - (2) V in male and I ( 1½) - (2+) II ( 1½) - (3) III ( 2½) - (4-) IV (4-) - (2) V in female) ( Zhao et al. 2014, Li et al. 2020, Suppl. material 2).

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. differs from B. platyparietus by having a smaller size SVL 70.1 mm in male and 80.1 - 84.9 mm in three females (vs. 88.5 - 113.0 mm in males, n = 6 and 118.5 - 131.0 mm in female, n = 3); lateral fringes on toes narrow (vs. wide); brown nuptial pad without nuptial spines present on the dorsal surface of the first finger (vs. dark brown nuptial pads with black nuptial spines present on the dorsal bases of the first two fingers); webbing formula I (1) - (2+) II (2-) - (3-) III ( 2½) - (4-) IV (4++) - (2-) V in male and I ( 1½) - (2+) II (2-) - (3+) III ( 2½) - (4) IV (4++) - (2) V in female (vs. I ( 1½)-(2+) II ( 1½)-(3) III (2⅓)-(3⅔) IV(3⅔)-(2-) V in male and I ( 1½)-(2+) II ( 1½)-(3) III (2⅔)-(4-) IV (4-)-(2⅔) V) ( Rao and Yang 1997, Li et al. 2020, Suppl. material 2).

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. differs from B. feae by having a smaller body size in male, SVL 70.1 mm (vs. 78.5 - 94.9 mm in males, n = 5); tibiotarsal articulation reaching to commissure of jaw when leg stretched forward both in male and females (vs. reaching to shoulder in females); brown nuptial pad present on the dorsal surface of the first finger (vs. dark brown nuptial pads present on the dorsal bases of the first two fingers); webbing formula I (1) - (2+) II (2-) - (3-) III ( 2½) - (4-) IV (4++) - (2-) V in male (VS. I (2)-(2++) II (2-)-(3)III (2⅔)-(4) IV (4)-(2⅔) V) ( Boulenger 1887, Li et al. 2020, Suppl. material 2).

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. further differs from B. feae by having more notes of each call (16 - 20 notes vs. 4 - 5 notes); a longer call duration 7690-11330 ms (vs. 2256-35488 ms) and a higher dominant frequency 1640 - 2330 Hz (vs. 1378 Hz) ( Wogan et al. 2004).

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. differs from B. chuannanensis by having a smaller body size SVL 70.1 mm in male (vs. 91.4 - 109.4 mm in males, n = 12); the male with brown nuptial pad on dorsal surface of the first finger (vs. dark brown nuptial pads present on the dorsal bases of the first two fingers); lateral fringes on toes of male wider (one third as broad as distal toe phalanx vs. one fifth)( Fei and Ye 2001, Li et al. 2020, Suppl. material 2).

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. from B. carinense by having a smaller body size SVL 70.1 mm in male and 80.1 - 84.9 mm in females (vs. 91.6 - 123.0 mm in males, n= 4 and 124.0 - 168.0 mm, n = 3); by the absence of dermal ridges on dorsum (vs. present); tibiotarsal articulation reaching to commissure of jaw when leg stretched forward (vs. reaching to axilla in females and angle of mouth in males); webbing formula I (1) - (2+) II (2-) - (3-) III ( 2½) - (4-) IV (4++) - (2-) V in male (VS. I ( 1½)-(2++) II (2)-(3++) III (3)-(4) IV(4++)-( 2½) V) ( Boulenger 1889, Li et al. 2020, Suppl. material 2).

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. differs from B. intermedia by having a smaller body size (SVL 70.1 mm in male and 80.1 - 84.9 mm in females vs. 86.0 - 103.0 mm in males, n = 7 and 92.0 mm in female) and the absence of glandular folds on dorsum (vs. present) ( Smith 1921, Li et al. 2020, Suppl. material 2).

Etymology

The specific name Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis refers to the distribution of this species, Qiannan Autonomous Prefecture, the County to where the type locality of the species belongs. We propose the common English name "Qiannan short-legged toad" and Chinese name "Qian Nan Duan Tui Chan ( 黔南短腿蟾)”.

Distribution

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. is known from the type locality, Libo County, Guizhou Province, China at elevations between 1100 - 1200 m a.s.l.

Ecology

Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. inhabits a mountain stream (Fig. 6 ) covered by evergreen broadleaf forest, there being only a small amount of water on the surface of the stream. Advertisement call of males can be heard from beneath the rocks at night and the females were frequently found near large rocks.

Figures

Figure 2. Photos of the holotype CIB LB 20210806054 of Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. in life. A dorsal view; B ventral view; C dorsal view of hand (insert: the nuptial pad on the dorsal surface of the first finger); D ventral view of hand; E ventral view of foot.

Figure 3. The holotype specimen CIB LB 20210806054 of Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. in preservative. A dorsal view; B ventral view; C view of oral cavity; D lateral view; E ventral view of hand; F ventral view of foot.

Figure 4. Colour variation Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. in life A dorsal view of the female specimen CIB LB 20210806055; B ventral view of the female specimen CIB LB 20210806055; C dorsal view of the specimen the female specimen CIB LB 20210806055; D ventral view of the female specimen CIB LB 20210806056.

Figure 5. Visualisation of advertisement calls of Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. A waveform showing one note; B sonogram showing one note; C waveform showing 20 notes of one call; D sonogram showing 20 notes of one call (A and B are the same note, C and D are the same call).

Figure 6. Habitat of Brachytarsophrys qiannanensis sp. nov. in the type locality, Libo County, Guizhou Province, China.