Wang, Kai and Jiang, Ke and Deepak, V and Abhijit, Das and Hou, Mian and Che, Jing and Siler, Cameron D (2018) On the Occurrences of Japalura kumaonensis and Japalura tricarinata (Reptilia: Sauria: Draconinae) in China. In: HERPETOLOGICA, 74 (2). pp. 181-190.
Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)Abstract
Although the recognized distribution of Japalura kumaonensis is restricted largely to western Himalaya, a single, isolated outlier population was reported in eastern Himalaya at the China-Nepal border in southeastern Tibet, China in Zhangmu, Nyalam County. Interestingly, subsequent studies have recognized another morphologically similar species, J. tricarinata, from the same locality in Tibet based on photographic evidence only. Despite these reports, no studies have examined the referred specimens for either record to confirm their taxonomic identifications with robust comparisons to congener species. Here, we examine the referred specimen of the record of J. kumaonensis from southeastern Tibet, China; recently collected specimens from the same locality in southeastern Tibet; type specimens; and topotypic specimens of both J. kumaonensis and J. tricarinata, to clarify the taxonomic identity of the focal population from southeastern Tibet, China. Our results indicate that individuals of the referred Tibetan population differ from J. kumaonensis in external morphology, but match descriptions and specimens of J. tricarinata. We conclude that the previous record of J. kumaonensis from Tibet was a misidentification of J. tricarinata, and J. kumaonensis should be recognized as occurring in western Himalaya only. To facilitate future taxonomic studies of the genus Japalura sensu lato in the Himalaya, we provide a detailed description of J. tricarinata and an updated diagnostic key to the genus from the Himalaya.
| Item Type: | Journal Article |
|---|---|
| Publication: | HERPETOLOGICA |
| Publisher: | ALLEN PRESS INC, 810 E 10TH ST, LAWRENCE, KS 66044 USA |
| Additional Information: | Copy right of this article belong toALLEN PRESS INC, 810 E 10TH ST, LAWRENCE, KS 66044 USA |
| Department/Centre: | Division of Biological Sciences > Centre for Ecological Sciences |
| Date Deposited: | 12 Jun 2018 16:01 |
| Last Modified: | 12 Jun 2018 16:01 |
| URI: | http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/59993 |
Actions (login required)
 |
View Item |
