Three New Species of Cnemaspis (Sauria: Gekkonidae) from Sarawak, East Malaysia, Borneo

Abstract

Three new species of Cnemaspis are described from karst regions of Sarawak, Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. These are Cnemaspis matahari sp. nov. and C. sirehensis sp. nov. from limestone hills located in the Serian Division of western Sarawak, and C. lagang sp. nov. from Gunung Mulu, Miri Division, in northern Sarawak. All can be distinguished from congeners using mitochondrial DNA as well as an enlarged metatarsal scales on the first toe. Individually, each species can be diagnosed by differences in subcaudal scale morphology: Cnemaspis lagang sp. nov. lacks enlarged subcaudals; Cnemaspis matahari sp. nov. has keeled subcaudals bearing an enlarged median row of smooth scales; and Cnemaspis sirehensis sp. nov. has an enlarged median row of weakly keeled scales. The discovery of these species suggests that additional unrecognized species may exist within the genus on Borneo, especially in association with karst formations. High endemism and species diversity notwithstanding, these karst formations are under severe pressure from limestone extraction and deforestation.

Genomic analysis of Bornean geckos (Gekkonidae: Cyrtodactylus) reveals need for updated taxonomy

“…We suspect that the herpetological diversity on Borneo remains substantially underrepresented. Recent molecular systematic studies on Bornean herpetofauna have brought about a substantial increase in our understanding of the island's biodiversity (Etter et al, 2021; Flury et al, 2021; Hamidy et al, 2012; Karin et al, 2016; Karin et al, 2018; Matsui et al, 2010; Nashriq et al, 2022; Nishikawa et al, 2012; Pui et al, 2017; Riyanto et al, 2021; Shimada et al, 2011; Waser et al, 2017); however, most of these studies focused on taxa in Sarawak with few genetic studies from Sabah or Kalimantan. In Sabah, we demonstrate that ‘ consobrinus ’ populations are more closely aligned with the malayanus complex, indicating that the holotype for C. consobrinus kinabaluensis likely represents a full species.…”

Hidden diversity of rock geckos within the Cnemaspis siamensis species group (Gekkonidae, Squamata): genetic and morphological data from southern Thailand reveal two new insular species and verify the phylogenetic affinities of C. chanardi and C. kamolnorranathi

“…The genus has a geographically widespread distribution, ranging from South Asia to Southeast Asia, and is composed of two separate clades based on multi-locus phylogenetic analyses (Gamble et al 2012(Gamble et al , 2015Pyron et al 2013;Karunarathna et al 2019;Malonza and Bauer 2022). The 64 currently described Southeast Asian species of Cnemaspis represent a monophyletic group, include many species with specializations for various rocky habitats (Grismer et al , 2014Nguyen et al 2020), and are distributed in Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia (Bauer and Das 1998;Das 2005;Grismer and Ngo 2007;Grismer et al , 2014Grismer et al , 2020Kurita et al 2017;Riyanto et al 2017;Wood et al 2017;Ampai et al 2019Ampai et al , 2020Lee et al 2019;Nashriq et al 2022). In Thailand, 19 named species of Southeast Asian Cnemaspis (Grismer et al , 2014(Grismer et al , 2020Wood et al 2017;Ampai et al 2019Ampai et al , 2020Uetz et al 2022) occur throughout much of the country's mainland and adjacent offshore islands (Grismer et al 2014(Grismer et al , 2020Wood et al 2017;Ampai et al 2019Ampai et al , 2020Lee et al 2019).…”

A new rock gecko in the Cnemaspis siamensis group (Reptilia, Gekkonidae) from Kanchanaburi Province, western Thailand

“…The Southeast Asian Rock Gecko genus Cnemaspis Strauch, 1887 comprises a monophyletic clade of approximately 66 recognised species that are distributed from Laos, southern Vietnam westwards through southern Indochina, southwards through the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java and eastwards to Borneo (Grismer 2010;Grismer et al 2014Grismer et al , 2020Wood et al 2017;Riyato et al 2019;Ampai et al 2020;Quah et al 2020;Nashriq et al 2022;Uetz et al 2022). Based on molecular and morphological data, Southeast Asian Cnemaspis are recovered in four major monophyletic clades that contain six species groups (Grismer et al 2014).…”