Phyllurus ossa hobsoni, Couper, Patrick & Hoskin, Conrad J., 2013

Couper, Patrick & Hoskin, Conrad J., 2013, Two new subspecies of the leaf-tailed gecko Phyllurus ossa (Lacertilia: Carphodactylidae) from mid-eastern Queensland, Australia, Zootaxa 3664 (4), pp. 537-553 : 545-547

Phyllurus ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. Figs 7 A, 9B, 12

Material examined. Holotype. QMJ56773, near Little Conway Mtn, Conway SF (20°27ˏS, 148°44ˏE) P. Couper & B. Heinrich, 24 October 1992. Paratypes. QMJ56775, QMJ56791–92, Vine Ck, Mt Dryander (20°15ˏS, 148°33ˏE); QMJ57898 Mt Dryander (20°15ˏS, 148°36ˏE); QMJ90611–12 Deep Ck, Mt Dryander State Forest (20°16ˏ30˝S, 148°33ˏ45˝E); QMJ56766–71, Brandy Ck, Conway Ra. (20°21ˏS, 148°41ˏE); QMJ78761, Conway SF (20°21ˏ04˝S, 148°43ˏ38˝E); QMJ90609, Mt Wilson, Conway NP (20°26ˏ50˝S, 148°43ˏ14˝E); QMJ90610, Mt Wilson, Conway NP (20°26ˏ48˝S, 148°43ˏ16˝E); QMJ56772, QMJ56774, near Little Conway Mtn, Conway SF (20°27ˏS,148°44ˏE); QMJ83727, Conway, SF (20°23ˏ44˝S, 148°43ˏ53˝E).

Diagnosis. A medium-sized Phyllurus (SVL to 84 mm) with a flared original tail. Phyllurus ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. can be distinguished from its congeners by the following suite of characters: rostral partially divided by two or three deep grooves; axilla deeply invaginated; throat without scattered tubercles (see Fig. 4 B); subinfralabial scales homogeneous, merging gradually with smaller throat granules (see Fig. 5 B); pectoral region with a scattering of small granules extending medially from limb insertion (see Fig. 6 A, except in Mt Dryander population); enlarged dorsal tubercles of reduced spinosity on distal portion of forelimb ( Fig. 7 A); dorsal surface of foot with only a few, small bluntly-tipped tubercles; first phalanx of toe lacking spinose tubercles on dorsal surface (see 8A); original tail with tall, spinose tubercles on outer edges of flared portion ( Fig. 9 B).

Etymology. Named for Rod Hobson of the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service for his many and varied contributions to the documentation and conservation of Queensland’s reptiles. Rod first notified us of the occurrence of a leaf-tailed gecko on Whitsunday Island and assisted with the collection of the type series.

Measurements and scale counts of holotype. SVL = 73.24 mm, T (original) = 61.48 mm, HL = 21.46 mm, HW = 17.99 mm, HD = 7.13 mm, S = 9.05 mm, EE = 6.22 mm, NL = 15.08 mm, L1 = 29.61 mm, L2 = 39.09 mm, AG = 33.18 mm, lamellae 4th finger (17), lamellae 4th toe (20), supralabials (17), infralabials (13), subdigital scales from tip of 4th finger to junction of 3rd and 4th fingers 19, subdigital scales from tip of 4th toe to junction of 3rd and 4th toes 21.

Description. SVL (mm): 40.32–84.23 (n = 19, mean = 71.0, SD = 12.37). Proportions as % SVL: T = 76.65– 90.87 (n = 6, mean = 83.4, SD = 0.05); HL = 26.71–31.83 (n = 19, mean = 29.3, SD = 0.02); HW = 22.78–25.61 (n = 19, mean = 24.0, SD = 0.01); S = 11.24–14.70 (n = 19, mean = 12.5, SD = 0.01); EE = 8.08– 10.05 (n = 19, mean = 8.9, SD = 0.01); NL = 14.93–23.50 (n = 19, mean = 19.5, SD = 0.03); AG = 37.74–48.84 (n = 19, mean = 43.9, SD = 0.03); L1 = 40.43–47.82 (n = 19, mean = 44.4, SD = 0.02); L2 = 49.60–59.13 (n = 19, mean = 54.5, SD = 0.03). Head. Large, depressed, triangular, distinct from neck; head depth 35.8–43.7% of head width (n = 19, mean = 39.10, SD = 0.02); covered in small granules which are intermixed with larger conical tubercles; skin of head coossified with skull; one (n = 5), two (n = 3) or three (n = 11) deep vertical grooves penetrate dorsal edge of rostral scale (QMJ56773 has a single Y-shaped groove); rostral shield not in contact with nostril (n = 18); scales bordering dorsal edge of rostral scale 7–11 (n = 18, mode = 9, mean = 9.2, SD = 0.88); ear opening elliptical, vertical, much less than half as large as eye; supralabials 15–17 (n = 19, mode = 17, mean = 16.4, SD = 0.69); infralabials 12–15 (n = 19, mode = 13, mean = 13.7, SD = 0.87). Neck. Broad. Body. Moderate, depressed, covered in small granules; dorsal granules intermixed with larger conical tubercles; tubercles moderate on back but increasingly pronounced on flanks and sides of neck; basal scales surrounding upper flank and back tubercles not, or slightly, larger than adjacent granules; a patch of enlarged, centrally placed scales is present ventrally in pelvic region; a scattering of small pale granules present (n = 13, see Fig. 6 A) or absent (n = 6, Mt Dryander specimens only) ventrally in pectoral region near limb insertion. Preanal pores absent. Axilla deeply invaginated. Limbs. Long, covered in pronounced pointed tubercles dorsally; enlarged, rounded or bluntly-tipped tubercles sparsely scattered on ventral surfaces of upper fore and hindlimbs; digits strongly compressed distally; enlarged subdigital lamellae on 4th finger 15–20 (n = 19, mode = 17, mean = 16.8, SD = 1.03); dorsal surface of fingers without enlarged conical tubercles; enlarged subdigital lamellae on 4th toe 16–20 (n = 19, mode = 19, mean = 17.9, SD = 1.14); dorsal surface of toes without enlarged conical tubercles (n = 12), with enlarged conical tubercles present on the first phalanx of the 5th toe (n = 4) or with enlarged conical tubercles present on the first phalanx of toes 2–5 (n = 3); subdigital scales from tip of 4th finger to junction of 3rd and 4th fingers 16–20 (n = 19, mean = 17.8; SD = 1.07); subdigital scales from tip of 4th toe to junction of 3rd and 4th toes 17–22 (n = 19, mean = 19.4; SD = 1.26). Original tail. Flared, carrot-shaped, tapering to a fine attenuated tip and terminating in a small knob. Dorsal surface of flared portion covered with enlarged conical to spinose tubercles; sharp, spinose tubercles present along outer edges ( Fig. 9 B); very small spinose tubercles on edges of basal portion of attenuated tip (along ~3/4 of attenuated portion). Regenerated tail. Leaf-shaped with slightly bulbous tip; dorsal surface covered in minute bluntly-tipped granules.

Pattern in spirit. Dorsal surface of head and body greyish/brown with numerous irregular dark blotches; a longitudinal row of larger blotches down either side of back but not meeting across vertebral line which generally remains patternless and clearly defined; flanks speckled with smaller dark blotches; ventral surface of body pale, unpatterned. Original tail (n = 6). Greyish brown above with seven narrow cream bands (numbered 1–7 from base to tip), three on flared portion, four on attenuated tip; bands 1–3 irregular and broken, bands 4–7 continuous and encircling attenuated tail tip; ventral surface of flared portion greyish with pale mottling at edges and a pale centre. Limbs. Marked with irregular dark mottling. Regenerated tail (n = 13). Pale fawn to brown, heavily marbled with dark brown to black blotches above and below. Pattern in life. As above.

Comparison. Phyllurus ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. can only be confused with its congeners that have broadlyflared original tails (hence P. caudiannulatus , P. gulbaru and P. kabikabi are excluded from further consideration). Of the broad-tailed species, P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov., P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. and P. ossa ossa are the only three that possess more than one central groove on the rostral shield (usually two or three grooves present). Phyllurus ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. is separated from P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. by its throat scalation (nontuberculate, throat granules uniformly small vs throat scales interspersed with larger tubercles; Fig. 4 ), the state of its subinfralabial scales (homogeneous vs heterogenous; Fig. 5 ), the arrangement of tubercles on the ventral surface of the upper forelimb (moderate to sparse vs densely packed) and its original tail which has spinose tubercles along the outer edges of the flared portion (vs tail largely devoid of spinose tubercles on edges; Fig. 9 ). It is separated from P. ossa ossa in having a scattering of small granules in the pectoral region that extend medially from limb insertion vs pectoral region lacking small granules that extend medially from limb insertion ( Fig. 6 ), by having reduced size and spinosity of dorsal tubercles on lower forelimb above wrist vs lower forelimb with large sharply pointed tubercles extending to wrist ( Fig. 7 ), and by the spinosity of the first phalanx of the toe (lacking spinose tubercles on dorsal surface vs first phalanx of toe generally bearing a series of sharply pointed tubercles along dorsal surface ( Fig. 8 ).

Genetics. Approximately 5.9% divergent from P. ossa ossa and 6.7% divergent from P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. for cyt- b mtDNA ( Fig. 2 ). Within P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov., there is approximately 2% divergence between the population at Mt Dryander and those in the Conway Range.

Distribution. Narrowly restricted to the Proserpine area of the mid eastern Queensland coast ( Fig. 10 ), with disjunct populations on Mt Dryander (20°15’S, 148°33’E) and in the Conway Range (20°21’S, 148°48’E). Habitat and habits. Low to mid-elevation vine forests associated with rocky gullies and slopes ( Fig. 11 A, B). Rock at the sites is acid—intermediate volcanic substrates from the Early Cretaceous Whitsunday/ Proserpine Volcanics (Henderson & Johnson, 1985). Nocturnal; largely saxicolous.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Neighbour-joining tree of P. ossa subspecies. Numbers on branches are Kimura two-parameter distance estimates. AJ numbers are GenBank accession numbers; QMJ numbers are Queensland Museum registration numbers.

FIGURE 4. Condition of throat scales for: A) P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. (QMJ 89131) with fine widely scattered tubercles; B) P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. and P. ossa ossa (QMJ 54327) without fine widely scattered throat tubercles.

FIGURE 5. Condition of subinfralabial scales (ventrolateral view) for: A) P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. (QMJ 89131) – heterogeneous; B) P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. P. ossa ossa (QMJ 53427) — homogeneous.

FIGURE 6. Condition of pectoral area (ventral view) for: A) P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. (QMJ 89154) and P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. (excluding Mt Dryander population) — with scattered granules extending towards midline; B) P. ossa ossa (QMJ 53428) — granules confined to lateral areas.

FIGURE 7. Condition of spinosity of antebrachium (dorsal view) for: A) P. o s sa t a m oy a subsp. nov. and P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. (QMJ 56773) — reduced spinosity; B) P. ossa ossa (QMJ 53428) — spinose.

FIGURE 8. Condition of first phalanx (dorsal view of hindlimb) for: A) P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. (QMJ 89154) without enlarged, spinose tubercles; B) P. ossa ossa (QMJ 53428) — with enlarged spinose tubercles.

FIGURE 9. Original tails (dorsal view) of: A) P. o s sa t am o y a subsp. nov. (QMJ 89139); B) P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. (QMJ 56773); C) P. ossa ossa (QMJ 53428).

FIGURE 10. Distribution map of the three subspecies of P. ossa, showing locality records for: P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. (square), P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. (bulls-eyes) and P. ossa ossa (triangles). The towns of Mackay and Proserpine are shown (Google © 2010; Image NASA © 2012 Cnes / Spot Image Data S 10, NOAA, U. S. Navy, NGA, CEBCO). The inset shows the position in Australia.

FIGURE 11. Typical rocky rainforest habitat of P. o s s a subspecies: A) Mt Dryander; B) Conway Range; C) Whitsunday Is.; D) Mt Ossa / Ossa Ck (images A, B & D: P. Couper; image C: A. Amey).