Dopasia ludovici (Mocquard, 1905)

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 : 64-65

Dopasia ludovici (Mocquard, 1905)

Holotype: MNHN 1904.388. Type locality: Bao Lac, Tonkin (now Cao Bang Province, northern Vietnam) (Brygoo 1987).

Common name. Ludovic’s Glass Lizard.

Diagnosis. Maximum SVL 195 mm; ear opening smaller than nostril or concealed; nasal separated from frontonasal by 2 (rarely 2/3) scales; dorsal scales strongly keeled; longitudinal scale rows between lateral folds 18–20; scales along lateral fold 88–102; vertebrae from atlas to remnants of hind leg bones 55–58; lateral sides dark brown with some saw-tooth pigmentation on dorsolateral region, weakly developed in posterior part of body; dark dorsolateral stripe present on tail; ventrolateral stripe absent (Brygoo 1987; pers. obs.) ( Figs. 3 C, 3D, 6).

Specimens examined. Vietnam: VNMN 819 (adult female) collected in June 2009 by Nguyen Thien Tao and Nguyen Van Quang from Sa Pa, Lao Cai Province (elevation 1500 m); ZFMK 83906 (juvenile) collected by Nguyen Quang Truong and Ho Thu Cuc in October 2004 from Tam Dao, Vinh Phuc Province; ZFMK 91690 (body damaged, sex unknown) collected in 29 April 2008 by Vu Ngoc Thanh from Tung Vai, Quan Ba District, Ha Giang province (23°02'N, 104°52', elevation 1000 m).

Description. Body cylindrical and without limbs, SVL 195 mm (n = 1), TaL 248 mm (n = 1); ear opening smaller than nostril or concealed; prefrontals in contact or barely separated; nasal separated from frontonasal by 2 (2/ 3 in ZFMK 91690) scales; supraoculars 5; supraciliaries 5–7; supralabials 10, first and second bordering nostril; infralabials 9; dorsal scales strongly keeled; longitudinal scale rows between lateral folds 18–20; ventral scales in 10 longitudinal rows; number of scales along lateral fold 88–102; number of vertebrae from atlas to remnants of hind leg bones 55.

Coloration in preservative. Dorsal head, body, and tail gray brown with or without a series of dark vertebral sport or markings; lateral sides dark brown with some saw-tooth pigmentation on dorsolateral region, present but weakly developed in posterior part of body; dark dorsolateral stripe present on tail; ventrolateral stripe absent (Brygoo 1987; pers. obs.).

Distribution. In Vietnam, besides the type locality in Bao Lac (Cao Bang Province), our findings include new records for Lao Cai, Ha Giang, and Vinh Phuc provinces. A photo of D. ludovici in life was taken by Craig Robson in 2009 in the Ba Vi National Park (Hanoi). Elsewhere, this species is known from Sichuan, southern China (Brygoo 1987).

Remarks. Many authors considered D. ludovici as a synonym of D. harti , e.g., Pope (1929), Smith (1935), Bourret (2009), and Nguyen et al. (2009). However, based on the number of vertebrae from the atlas to the remnants of the hind leg bones, Brygoo (1987) suggested that D. ludovici with 55–58 VPS should be considered as a distinct species (versus 50–54 VPS in D. harti ). Two specimens from Vietnam (VNMN 819, ZFMK 83906) have 55 VPS and another damaged specimen (ZFMK 91690) has 55+ VPS. Our investigation of the material from northern Vietnam showed that the lateral color pattern is an important external character which can be used to distinguish D. ludovici from D. harti . The dark brown color of the sides is present only in younger D. harti ( Fig. 3 B, see also Lin et al. 2003: Fig. 1 C) but it appears in both young and adults of D. ludovici (in the holotype [see Fig. 5 in Brygoo, 1987] and three recently collected specimens from Vietnam). The saw-tooth pigmentation on the dorsolateral region is only present on the neck and shoulder in young D. harti , whereas it is continuously present in posterior half of the body or near to the vent in D. ludovici .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Dopasia gracilis: A) Subadult female (PNKB 2007.8.1) from Phong Nha – Ke Bang NP, Quang Binh Province, photograph Thomas Ziegler and B) Subadult male (VNUH 2008.7.10) from Son Ha, Quang Ngai Province, photograph Quyet K. Le.

FIGURE 3. Dopasia harti: A) An adult (sex unknown) from Sa Pa, Lao Cai Province photograph Cuc T. Ho; B) Juvenile (ZFMK 9471) from Fujian, China, photograph Truong Q. Nguyen; and Dopasia ludovici: C & D) Subadult (sex unknown) from Ba Vi NP, Hanoi, photograph Craig Robson.

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.