Dopasia hainanensis (Yang, 1983)

Nguyen, Truong Quang, Böhme, Wolfgang, Nguyen, Tao Thien, Le, Quyet Khac, Pahl, Kristian Robert, Haus, Tanja & Ziegler, Thomas, 2011, Review of the genus Dopasia Gray, 1853 (Squamata: Anguidae) in the Indochina subregion, Zootaxa 2894, pp. 58-68 : 62

Dopasia hainanensis (Yang, 1983)

Holotype: BMAM 820203. Type locality: Xinan Tree Farm, Diaoluoshan, Hainan Island, China, elevation: 950 m a.s.l. (Yang 1983).

Common name. Hainan Glass Lizard.

Diagnosis. Maximum SVL 285 mm; ear opening very small, as a pinpoint; nasal separated from frontonasal by 2 scales; dorsal scales weakly carinated on anterior part of back, progressively keeled on posterior part of body and tail; longitudinal scale rows between lateral folds 20, scales along lateral fold 95–101; vertebrae from atlas to remnants of hind leg bones 53–54; dark dorsolateral stripe present, from one head-length behind ear opening to tail tip, indistinct anteriorly, progressively broader and more distinct posteriorly; ventrolateral stripe absent (Yang 1983; pers. obs.) ( Fig. 5 A).

Specimens examined. Vietnam: Vinh Phuc Province: Tam Dao (elevation 900 m): IEBR A.2010.11 (adult female) collected on 25 June 2002 by Hoang Long; IEBR A.2010.12 (adult female) collected on 18 September 2002 by Trinh Viet Cuong; and IEBR 1512 (adult male) collected on 27 October 2004 by Nguyen Quang Truong and Ho Thu Cuc.

Description. Body cylindrical and without limbs, SVL 200–278 mm (n = 3), TaL 386 mm (n = 1); ear opening very small, as a pinpoint; prefrontals in contact; nasal separated from frontonasal by 2 scales; supraoculars 5; supraciliaries 6; supralabials 10, first and second bordering nostril; infralabials 9; dorsal scales weakly carinated on anterior part of back, progressively keeled on posterior part of body and tail; longitudinal scale rows between lateral folds 20; ventral scales in 10 longitudinal rows; number of scales along lateral fold 95–99; number of vertebrae from atlas to remnants of hind leg bones 53–54.

Coloration in preservative. Dorsal head and body gray brown; back with a series of dark vertebral spots in two females (IEBR A.2010.11–A.2010.12) or irregular dark crossbars in the male (IEBR 1512), forming a discontinuous median stripe on tail; dark dorsolateral stripe present, from one head-length behind ear opening to tail tip, indistinct anteriorly, progressively broader and more distinct posteriorly; ventrolateral stripe absent.

Distribution. This is the first record of D. hainanensis from Vietnam: Vinh Phuc (Tam Dao). Elsewhere, this species has been reported from China (Hainan Island) (Zhao & Adler 1993).

Remarks. D. hainanensis resembles D. harti , however, we provisionally consider D. hainanensis to represent a distinct taxon based on external morphological characters as they were stated in the original description by Yang (1983) (e.g., ear opening as a pinpoint in D. hainanensis vs. equal or smaller than nostril in D. harti and scales between lateral folds in 20 longitudinal rows in D. hainanensis vs. 14–18 rows in D. harti ). Yang (1983) mentioned that the dorsal and subcaudal scales are smooth in the holotype but this character is likely to be changed with age: two large specimens (IEBR 1512, A.2010.12) have feebly carinated scales on the anterior part of the dorsum and under the tail but the keels are more developed in the smaller specimen (IEBR A.2011). The female (IEBR A.2010.12), which was collected in September 2002 from Tam Dao Mountain, contained 21 eggs (size of largest one: 25.3 x 14.9 mm).

Figures

FIGURE 5. Radiographs of A) Dopasia hainanensis (IEBR 1512) from Tam Dao NP, Vinh Phuc Province and B) Dopasia harti (ZSM 477.1979 B) from Fujian, China. photographs Robert K. Pahl.