The Asian pitviper genus Ovophis is a group of venomous snakes widely distributed in mid to high elevation mountains in Asia, and presently five species are recognised. However, its systematics, species diversity and species distribution boundaries remain poorly understood. We reconstructed the phylogenetic relationships and explored species diversity of Chinese Ovophis based on two mitochondrial fragments (Cyt b and ND4) and four nuclear genes (BACH1, c-mos, Rag1, NT3) and also conducted a morphological comparison between focal species. Our results indicated that the species diversity had been underestimated within Ovophis and we described a population from southern Yunnan, China, as a new taxon, naming it as Ovophis malhotrae sp. nov. Based on more extensive sampling, we redefined the distribution of O. monticola and O. makazayazaya in China. Divergence date estimation suggested that Ovophis originated at about 16.79 Ma in the middle Miocene.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.