Amyda ornata jongli, Praschag & Gemel, 2022

Praschag, Peter & Gemel, Richard, 2022, A new subspecies of the Asiatic softshell turtle Amyda ornata (Gray, 1861) from its northern distribution range, Herpetozoa 35, pp. 81-93 : 81

publication ID	https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/herpetozoa.35.e86055
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:066DFFD0-46A4-4E58-8F98-2AF034E299E6
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/F3CFF4E4-68F9-52FD-A578-967EA4321B78
treatment provided by	Herpetozoa by Pensoft
scientific name	Amyda ornata jongli
status	ssp. nov.

Treatment

Amyda ornata jongli ssp. nov.

Holotype.

NHMW 40287 (Natural History Museum Vienna, herpetological collection): subadult specimen; skull and lower jaw; incomplete postcranial skeleton: parts of discus, shoulder girdle, pelvic girdle and extremities (Figs 2 View Figure 2 - 5 View Figure 5 ). Measurements: bony disc length 10 cm, bony disc width 13,6 cm. Plastron: Straight width 14,9 cm. Skull: Straight length 6,6 cm, straight width 3,5 cm.

Terra typica.

Sangu River near Dohazari, Chittagong hill tracts, south-eastern Bangladesh, don. P. Praschag 3/2016.

Paratypes.

The paratypes consist of five living voucher specimens, one male and four females in the facility of "Turtle Island", NHMW 41463: 1-5 (Fig. 6a-j View Figure 6 ). Location of origin for all five paratypes: Sangu River near Dohazari (terra typica), Chittagong hill tracts, south-eastern Bangladesh (same location as holotype-specimen). The specimens will be transferred post mortem to the herpetological collection of the Natural History Museum Vienna. For measurements see Table 1 View Table 1 .

Derivatio nominis.

The subspecies name Amyda ornata jongli (noun in apposition) refers to the special term of local fishermen in Bangladesh who call this softshell turtle " Amyda ornata jongli " in Bengali, deriving from “jangala” in Sanskrit. It means wild and ferocious, as the animals are powerful and struggle when captured. Simultaneously it means also “… coming from rivers of jungle woodlands". Rahman et al. (2015) mention also the name “Tui-lip”, used by the Mro tribe. Suggested common names: English: "Northern Asiatic softshell turtle". German: “Nördliche Knorpel-Weichschildkröte”.

Taxonomic status.

The Maximum Likelihood Tree for Amyda and related softshell turtles shows five distinct clades, divided into three species. Clades 4 ("Pale coloured, large nuchal and back tubercles" now herein described as A. o. jongli ssp. nov.), 5 (" Trionyx phayrei " / " Trionyx ephippium ") and 6 (" Trionyx ornatus ") show similar levels of genetic differentiation from each other, and constitute the three identified subspecies from Mainland Southeast Asia ( Fritz et al. 2014).

Diagnosis on morphological base.

The heads in subadults and adults are stout (see Figs 5 View Figure 5 , 7a View Figure 7 ), with a dome rising up steeply from the top of the proboscis to the top of the head, in the region of prefrontals and frontals (see Fig. 9 View Figure 9 ). Compared to the two other subspecies of A. ornata , a broader distance between the eyes is seen in A. o. jongli (see Figs 3 View Figure 3 , 7b View Figure 7 ), although this relative distance varies depending on the ontogenetic stage of the specimen considered. Rather uniform pale and greyish colouration, carapace is olive greyish, bright yellow pigmentation missing (Fig. 6a-j View Figure 6 ). Yellow-greyish dots, and vermiculation on head and neck is faded and not distinctly marked, ochre-coloured irises, ring-shaped skin around eyes with indistinct light dots, no pronounced "zebra striped" pattern; carapace with (or sometimes without, but less common) distinct black strokes and blotches or irregular saddle-shaped dark colouration on carapace (see Fig. 9 View Figure 9 ). Black pigmentation mostly in the form of square spots on the rear edge of the carapace and two or three stripes running sideways from the center line of the carapace (compare Fig. 6a-j View Figure 6 of the paratypes). Distinct tubercles in nuchal and back region. Nuchal tubercles protrude in a round or pointed shape along the front edge of the carapace in subadult and adult specimens (Fig. 8 View Figure 8 ). Juveniles with tubercles on carapace running concentric, not longitudinal. Plastron white (in juveniles) changing to yellowish-grey during growth, mottled with clouds of black pigments especially on the parts of underlying bony skeleton.

Diagnostic comparisons.

The genus Amyda is distinguished from all other trionychids by the following suite of characteristics:

Carapace with black markings, sometimes black and yellow or bright dots, but no ocelli; skull: snout longer than the diameter of the orbit (more in juveniles than in adults); alveolar surface of the mandible with a longitudinal ridge at the symphysis; surface of jaws light; first and second neural fused; epiplastra in contact or narrowly separated, front part of epiplastra are elongated (see Fig. 7c View Figure 7 ); further detailed skull morphology is given by Van Dijk (1992).

A. ornata differs from A. cartilaginea (sensu stricto) and Amyda sp. (= candidate species A, sensu Fritz et al. 2014) by the stouter head versus narrow head tapering lengthwise with a longer proboscis.

Amyda o. ornata differs from the other two subspecies by its distinct yellow pigments on carapace, head and neck; the presence of a “crown”: two or three converging black lines forming an arrow on the upper side of the head; tubercles predominantly in the nuchal and front region of the carapace; saddle-shaped dark colouration on carapace uncommon. Distribution: Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia (Chaco Phraya, Irrawaddy and Salween River systems).

Amyda o. phayrei differs from the other two subspecies by its dull brown carapace, yellow pigments present forming distinct yellow dots on the head and neck; carapace with or without distinct saddle-shaped dark colouration; with eyes open, the eyelids have distinct yellow spots alternating with grey "zebra striped" colouration; tubercles in the nuchal and back region of the carapace but not as distinct as in A. o. jongli ssp. nov.; head in upper side view more slender and narrowed to the proboscis. Distribution: Thailand, Myanmar (delta region of the Irrawaddy (Ayeyarwady) and possibly neighbouring Salween (Thanlwin) river, NE India (Mizoram) and Yunnan ( Kuchling 1995).

Distribution data of Amyda ornata jongli ssp. nov.

(Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , Table 2 View Table 2 ). Bangladesh: Chittagong hill tracts: Sangu River system [=Sangpo river, Sankho river, Shankha River] and tributaries, Matamuhuri river; Karnaphuli river system. Sangu River: Dohazari (Terra typica) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 1); four Mro villages along upstream of Sangu River in Sangu-Matamuhuri Reserve Forest (villages Nr. 23, 24, 25 and 26 in Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , Rahman et al. 2015) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 2); Thanci Upazila [=Thanchi]: "rocky hill stream Remakri Khal" in Bandarban and Mro village "Nepew Para" ( Khan (2013 “2012”)), (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 3); village on the Matamuhuri River (village Nr. 1 in Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , Rahman et al. 2015) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 4); Sangu River at Remarki, border to Myanmar Fatik Chhari (pers. comm. Scott Trageser, Comitee Creative Conservation Alliance) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 6); Durung Khal river, mouth of the Halda river (pers. comm. Sureshchandra Das) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 7).

India: Mizoram: Ngengpui River, Ngenpui Wildlife Sanctuary, Lawngtlai (Pawar and Choudhuri 2000): bony disc deposited in the holdings of the Museum of Bombay Natural History Society under BNHM 1446 as confirmed by Rahul Khot, Curator of National History Collection department of the Bombay Natural History Society (pers. comm. 7th, April 2016) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 5); Tuirial River drainage, Aizawl District ( Hmar et al. 2020) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 8) (additionally occurring in most of the major river systems of the northern part and documented here from the rivers Teirei, Tut, Tlawng, Tuirini, Tuirial, Tuivawl & Tuipuibari, pers. comm., 6th March 2016 Tlau Vanlal Hrima, not considered in Fig. 1 View Figure 1 );

Tripura: Narichera Stream, North District ( Das et al. 2016) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 9);

Assam: Dhalchera river, Phaisen Hills, Cachar District ( Nath et al. 2018) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 10), fish market, Guwahati ( Anonymous 2020) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 11).

The area registered in the distribution records comprises two main river systems separated by a watershed running through the centre part of Mizoram: the southern region in southern Mizoram and Chittagong hill tracts containing Sangu River as a part of the "Kolodyne Basin" and draining in the Bay of Bengal. The northern part is situated in northern Mizoram Assam and Tripura and is dominated by the Barak River system ("Barak Basin") draining into the Brahmaputra; in the recent past a specimen was even reported from the fish market in Guwahati, Assam (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 , pt 11).