Megophrys (Panophrys) mufumontana J. Wang, Lyu & Y.Y. Wang

Wang, Jian, Lyu, Zhi-Tong, Liu, Zu-Yao, Liao, Cheng-Kai, Zeng, Zhao-Chi, Zhao, Jian, Li, Yu-Long & Wang, Ying-Yong, 2019, Description of six new species of the subgenus Panophrys within the genus Megophrys (Anura, Megophryidae) from southeastern China based on molecular and morphological data, ZooKeys 851, pp. 113-164 : 144-149

Megophrys (Panophrys) mufumontana J. Wang, Lyu & Y.Y. Wang sp. nov. Fig. 10, Table 9

Holotype.

SYS a006391, adult male, collected by Zhi-Tong Lyu on 3 August 2017 from Mt. Mufu (28°58'18.45"N, 113°48'58.53"E; 1300 m a.s.l.), Pingjiang County, Yueyang City, Hunan Province, China.

Paratypes (one male & two females).

Adult females, SYS a006390/CIB110012, SYS a006419, and the other adult male, SYS a006392, all collected by Zhi-Ting Lyu on 3 August 2017 from the same locality as the holotype.

Diagnosis.

(1) Body size small, SVL 30.1-30.8 mm in two adult males and SVL 36.3 mm in two adult females; (2) head length slightly larger than head width, HDW/HDL ratio 0.98-0.99; (3) tympanum distinct, moderate-sized, TD/ED ratio 0.51-0.58, upper 1/4 part of the tympanum concealed by supratympanic fold; (4) vomerine teeth absent; (5) margin of tongue not notched posteriorly; (6) heels overlapping, tibia-tarsal articulation reach forward to the tympanum in males and to the eye in females; (7) TIB/SVL ratio 0.47-0.53, FTL/SVL ratio 0.68-0.74; (8) fingers without lateral fringes, presence of a subarticular tubercle at the bases of each finger, relative finger lengths II = IV <I <III; (9) toes with rudimentary webbing at their bases and narrow lateral fringes, subarticular tubercles only present at the base of each toe; (10) numerous granules scattered with tubercles present on dorsal surface of body, limbs and surface of flanks, some of which forming a V-shaped, \ /-shaped or X-shaped skin ridge on central back of trunk; (11) presence of a small horn-like tubercle at the edge of the upper eyelid; (12) supratympanic fold distinct; (13) light brown to dark brown dorsally, with a dark triangular marking between eyes; (14) a pair of dark longitudinal and irregular marking with white edges on its upper side on ventrolateral surface of flanks; (15) surface of throat and chest greyish brown with dark brown patches and creamy white spots, surface of abdomen greyish white with creamy white and orange spots; (16) ventral surface of thighs with dense small whitish tubercles.

Comparisons.

Comparative data of Megophrys mufumontana sp. nov. with M. dongduanensis sp. nov., M. nankunensis sp. nov., M. jiulianensis sp. nov., Megophrys nanlingensis sp. nov., Megophrys wugongensis sp. nov., M. feii and the 33 recognized members of Megophrys s.l. allocated to the subgenus Panophrys are listed in Table 5.

Megophrys mufumontana sp. nov. differs from M. dongguanensis sp. nov., M. nankunensis sp. nov., M. jiulianensis sp. nov. and M. wugongensis sp. nov. by upper 1/4 part of the tympanum concealed by supratympanic fold (vs. tympanum entirely visible), the heels overlapping when hindlimb is stretched along the side of the body (vs. heels not meeting in M. dongguanensis sp. nov., M. nankunensis sp. nov., M. jiulianensis sp. nov. and M. wugongensis sp. nov.), presence of narrow lateral fringes on toes (vs. absent in M. dongguanensis sp. nov., M. nankunensis sp. nov. and M. jiulianensis sp. nov.), absence of vomerine teeth (vs. present in M. dongguanensis sp. nov., M. nankunensis sp. nov., M. jiulianensis sp. nov. and M. nanlingensis sp. nov.), tongue not notched posteriorly (vs. tongue notched in M. jiulianensis sp. nov. and M. nanlingensis sp. nov.), skin relatively smooth and lacking black horny spines (vs. skin rough with black horny spines in M. jiulianensis sp. nov.).

With the smaller body size, SVL 30.1-30.8 mm in males and 36.3 mm in females, Megophrys mufumontana sp. nov. differs from the 19 members with larger SVL values: M. baolongensis (42.0-45.0 mm in males), M. binchuanensis (32.0-36.0 mm in males, 40.2-42.5 mm in females), M. binlingensis (45.1-51.0 mm in males), M. caudoprocta (81.3 mm in single male), M. daweimontis (34.0-37.0 mm in males, 40.0-46.0 mm in females), M. fansipanensis (41.7-42.5 mm in females), M. hoanglienensis (37.4-47.6 mm in males, 59.6 mm in single female), M. jingdongensis (53.0-56.5 mm in males 63.5 in single female), M. latidactyla (38.9 mm in single male), M. liboensis (34.7-67.7 mm in males, 60.8-70.6 mm in females), M. minor (34.5-41.2 mm in males), M. omeimontis (56.0-59.5 mm in males, 68.0-72.5 mm in females), M. palpebralespinosa (36.2-38.0 mm in males), M. sangzhiensis (54.7 mm in single male), M. shuichengensis (102.0-118.3 mm in males, 99.8-115.6 mm in females), M. spinata (47.2-54.4 mm in males, 54.0-55.0 mm in females), M. tuberogranulatus (33.2-39.6 mm in males, 50.5 mm in single female), M. wushanensis (38.4 mm in single female) and M. wuliangshanensis (41.3 mm in single female).

Megophrys mufumontana sp. nov. differs from 12 species occurring in eastern and southern China ( M. acuta , M. brachykolos , M. boettgeri , M. cheni , M. huangshanensis , M. insularis , M. jinggangensis , M. kuatunensis , M. lini , M. lishuiensis , M. obesa and M. ombrophila ) by the following combination of characters: upper 1/4 part of the tympanum concealed by supratympanic fold (vs. tympanum entirely visible in the 12 species above), absence of vomerine teeth (vs. present in M. insularis and M. jinggangensis ), tongue not notched posteriorly (vs. tongue notched in M. boettgeri , M. cheni , M. huangshanensis , M. insularis and M. kuatunensis ), presence of narrow lateral fringes on toes (vs. absent in M. brachykolos , M. huangshanensis , M. insularis , M. lishuiensis , M. obesa and M. ombrophila ; wide in M. boettgeri and M. cheni ), toes with rudimentary webbing (vs. toes without webbing in M. huangshanensis , M. kuatunensis , M. lishuiensis and M. ombrophila ), the heels overlapping when hindlimb is stretched along the side of the body (vs. heels not meeting in M. acuta , M. brachykolos , M. insularis , M. obesa and M. ombrophila ).

Megophrys mufumontana sp. nov. differs from the remaining M. leishanensis and M. rubrimera allocated to the subgenus Panophrys by the absence of vomerine teeth (vs. present in M. rubrimera ), tongue not notched posteriorly (vs. tongue notched in M. rubrimera ), upper 1/4 part of the tympanum concealed by supratympanic fold (vs. tympanum entirely visible in M. leishanensis and M. rubrimera ), toes with narrow lateral fringes (vs. absent in M. leishanensis ; indistinct or absent in M. rubrimera ).

Megophrys mufumontana sp. nov. further differs from M. feii , for which molecular data are lacking and cannot be allocated to any subgenus base on morphology only ( Yang et al. 2018) by the larger body size, SVL 30.1-30.8 mm in males and 36.3 mm in females (VS. 24.3-25.1 mm in males, 28.2-28.9 mm in females), tongue not notched posteriorly (vs. tongue notched), toes with narrow lateral fringes (vs. moderate or wide).

Description of holotype.

Adult male. Habitus small, SVL 30.8 mm; head length slightly larger than head width, HDW/HWL 0.98; snout rounded in dorsal view, sloping backward to mouth in profile, protruding well beyond margin of lower jaw; top of head flat; eye large, ED/HDL 0.30; nostril oblique ovoid; pupil vertical; canthus rostralis well developed; loreal region vertical; internasal distance slightly larger than interorbital distance; tympanum distinct, moderate-sized, TD/ED 0.56; large ovoid choanae at the base of the maxilla; weak vomerine ridge present, vomerine teeth absent; margin of tongue not notched posteriorly.

RAD/SVL 0.25, HND/SVL 0.30; absence of lateral fringes and webbing on fingers, relative finger lengths II = IV <I <III; tip of finger rounded, slightly swollen; presence of a distinct subarticular tubercle on the base of each finger; outer metacarpal tubercles indistinct, inner metacarpal tubercles distinct and observably enlarged. Hindlimbs long, tibio-tarsal articulation reaching forward to the tympanum when hindlimb is stretched along the side of the body; heels overlapping when the flexed hindlimbs are held at right angles to the body axis; TIB/SVL 0.53 and FTL/SVL 0.74; relative toe lengths I <II <V <III <IV; tips of toes round and slightly dilated; presence of rudimentary webbing and narrow lateral fringes on toes but absence of tarsal folds; presence of a subarticular tubercle only at the bases of each toes; presence of a long ovoid inner metatarsal tubercle and absence of outer metatarsal tubercle.

Dorsal skin texture rough with dense granules and scattered with small tubercles, some of which forming a \ /-shaped skin ridge on central back of trunk; presence of a small horn-like tubercle at the edge of upper eye lid; distinct supratympanic fold curving posteroventrally from posterior corner of eye to a level above insertion of arm; upper 1/4 part of the tympanum covered by supratympanic fold; ventral skin texture smooth with granules; pectoral gland large, closer to axilla; single large femoral gland on rear of thigh.

Measurements of holotype (in mm).

SVL 30.1, HDL 11.6, HDW 11.4, SNT 3.5, IND 3.0, IOD 2.8, ED 3.5, TD 18, TED 1.7, HND 8.5, RAD 7.2, FTL 21.8, TIB 15.1.

Coloration of holotype in life.

(Fig. 10 A–D) Dorsal surface brown, with a distinct and incomplete dark triangular marking between eyes. Hindlimb with black transverse bands. A dark brown vertical band below the eye. Horn-like tubercle at the edge of the upper eyelid red. Surface of throat and chest greyish brown with dark brown patches. Surface of abdomen greyish white with creamy white and orange spots. Ventral surface of limbs pink with white spots and light-yellow patches. Ventral surface of hand and foot brown, inner and outer metatarsal tubercles and inner metacarpal tubercle pink. Pectoral and femoral glands white. Iris white.

Coloration of holotype in preservative. Coloration of dorsum dark brown, markings on dorsal surface and transverse bands on limbs became indistinct. Ventral surface of throat, chest and abdomen dark grey. All patches on ventral surface indistinct, all colored spots absent. Ventral surface of limbs light yellow.

Variation.

Measurement data of type series are listed in Table 9.

All paratypes are very similar to holotype SYS a006391 in morphology and color pattern. However, tibia-tarsal articulation reaching forward to the eye when hindlimb is stretched along the side of the body in all females, and granules and tubercles forming a \ /-shaped skin ridge on central back of trunk in the holotype (vs. X-shaped in SYS a006390, 6419; V-shaped in SYS a006392 (Fig. 10 E–F)).

Etymology.

The specific epithet “mufumontana” is in reference to the type locality of the new species, Mt. Mufu. We propose the common English name "Mufushan Horned Toad" and Chinese name "Mu Fu Shan Jiao Chan ( 幕阜山角蟾)”.

Distribution and habits.

Currently, Megophrys mufumontana sp. nov. is known only from Mt. Mufu, Pingjiang County, Yueyang City, Hunan Province, China at approximate 1300 m a.s.l.. All specimens were collected on leaf litter near a stream (about 5 m wide) surrounded by moist subtropical evergreen broadleaved forests, males were not heard calling. Tadpoles were not observed. Because none of the males have nuptial pads developed and none of the females have fallopian tubes and eggs developed, the breeding season of M. mufumontana sp. nov. remains unknown.