A new species of Cyrtodactylus is described on the basis of five specimens collected from the karst formations of Zhenkang County, Yunnan Province, China. Cyrtodactylus zhenkangensis sp. nov. is recognized by having a unique combination of morphological characters, the most diagnostic being: 12-15 enlarged femoral scales on each thigh; 2-5 femoral pores on each thigh in males, 0-3 pitted scales on each thigh in females; eight or nine precloacal pores in a continuous row or separated by one poreless scale in males, 7-9 pitted scales in females; subcaudals enlarged, arranged alternately as single and double on anterior and mostly single at middle and posterior; dorsal surface of head with obvious reticulations. Phylogenetic analyses show that the new species is a member of the C. wayakonei species group and a sister taxon to a clade consisting of C. wayakonei and C. martini based on Maximum Likelihood analyses and Bayesian Inference and differs from its congeners by at least 12.0% genetic divergence in a fragment of the COI gene.
Keywords: Bent-toed gecko; Cyrtodactylus wayakonei; Zhenkang; karst-dwelling; taxonomy.
Shuo Liu, Dingqi Rao.