Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus ( Vasudevan & Dutta, 2000 )

Raj, Prudhvi, Vasudevan, Karthikeyan, Dutta, Sushil Kumar, Sahoo, Gunanidhi, Mahapatra, Susmita & Sharma, Richa, 2023, Larval morphology of selected anuran species from India, Alytes 39 - 40, pp. 1-140 : 120-123

S29. Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus ( Vasudevan & Dutta, 2000) ( fig. 59‒60 )

Larval series examined. WT 080 ( Andiparai Shola , Indira Gandhi WLS, Tamil Nadu, India). Eggs and tadpoles were collected in November 1998 in a water pool with complete canopy cover .

Notes. Taxonomic identity was confirmed by rearing the tadpoles till metamorphosis. No larval description for this species was made earlier.

External morphology. Description of a tadpole at Gosner stage 36. Body ovoid and globular in dorsal and lateral perspectives ( fig. 59a‒c ). Body length 31.3 % of total length; maximum body diameter attained at mid-length of body. Snout rounded and body elevated in dorsal profile. Eyes large; located and oriented dorsolaterally, near to lateral corners of dorsum; distance between eye and nostril 55.8 % of distance between eye and snout. Nostrils located dorsolaterally, midway between eye and nostril; inter-narial distance 43.1 % of inter-orbital distance; distance between nostril and snout 12.3 % of body length. Spiracle sinistral and short; inner wall of tube formed but attached to body wall, with small aperture and oriented dorsolaterally, its opening located just below the median and above the venter on lateral side of body. Distance between spiracle and snout 61.9 % of body length. Vent tube opening dextral. Tail tip rounded; musculature linear till mid-length of tail, tapering beyond. Dorsal fin taller than ventral fin; maximum height of tail at mid length; origin of dorsal tail fin at body-tail junction; ventral fin originating at ventral terminus. Height of tail muscle 1.28 times width of tail muscle at tail-body junction; tail (caudal) musculature accounting for 64.2 % of height of tail. Lateral line visible along snout and lateral sides of body and tail fin. Glands absent on dorsal side.

Oral disc anteroventral in location ( fig. 59c ). Rostral width of oral disc 35.5 % of maximum body width; labium entire (emarginated) and bifurcated at lateral commissures; one row of marginal papillae on lower labium and till quarter of upper labium; marginal papillae broadly interrupted on upper labium. Two rows of submarginal papillae at lateral commissures. Labial tooth row formula A6(3‒6)/P3(1); upper labium with six labial tooth rows including four divided (A3 to A6) and two undivided rows (A1 and A2); length of each row in descending order from A1 to A6; lower labium with three labial tooth rows; P1 divided; P3 smallest; labial tooth rows single. Both jaw sheath margins uniformly serrated with moderate sized serrations.

Measurements of 24 tadpoles at various Gosner stages (28‒29, 31‒32, 36‒37, 41‒42, 45) are given in tab. 28 .

Coloration. In life, dorsal body was olive green. In preservation, dorsal body brown with tiny melanophores. Ventral integument dirty white and transparent, with gut coils visible. Body sparsely speckled with tiny melanophores. Gular region spotted with few melanophores. Both fins and tail muscle spotted with tiny melanophores spread uniformly. Anterior region darker than posterior region of tail fin.

Buccopharyngeal morphology. Buccal roof ( fig. 60a ). Prenarial arena with a transverse ridge bearing four pustules; median pair of pustules larger of four. Internal nares transverse, oriented medially; gap between nares narrow, about half the length of nare; anterior narial wall pustulose with very few tiny pustules and a tall, pustulated papilla present medially; posterior wall tall, smooth and valvular. Postnarial arena with five papillae arranged in an inverted ‘V’ oriented anteromedially; two pair of tall, conical and pustulated papillae present immediately behind posterior narial walls; all four papillae of equal height; a tiny papilla present adjacent to median ridge papilla. Median ridge papilla triangular with a pustulated margin and bifid tip. A single pustulated lateral ridge papilla perpendicular to median ridge; lateral ridge papillae longest of all papillae in buccal region. BRA demarcated with five pairs of long pustulated papillae on lateral border of the roof; about 50 tiny pustules spread across BRA.

Buccal floor ( fig. 60b ). Prelingual arena composed of five palps on posterolateral corners of jaw sheath. Size of palps follows an ascending order with anterior palp being smallest. All palps except posterior palp with smooth margin; posterior palp dilated with four projections placed equidistantly and posterior projection being longest. Pair of bifid papillae located posteromedially between the two posterior palps of prelingual arena. Tongue anlage round and raised; two smooth lingual papillae with no pustules at the centre. BFA well defined delineated by BFA papillae; anterior region of BFA smooth; five BFA papillae beginning from middle of BFA and passing posterolateral; anterior BFA papillae were longer, curved and pustulated; a second row of four papillae present laterally to BFA papillae; centre region of BFA composed of 6‒8 papillae and 40 postulations. Space between tongue anlage and buccal pockets comprising 12 postulations on each side. Buccal pockets opening wide transversely arranged; pair of pustulated pre-pocket papillae; long, pustulated, curved papillae present on posterior margin of buccal pocket. Space between BFA and ventral velum composed of about 16 pustules. Ventral velum wide and sinuate with 16 projections; 10 projections closer and concentrated around centre; outer three projections on each side widely placed apart; median notch not prominent; outer margin with many secretory pits and no spicules.

Figures

Figure 59. Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus, Gosner stage 32. External morphology: (a) Lateral view, (b) Dorsal view, (c) Ventral view. Scale = 10 mm.

Figure 60. Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus, Gosner stage 36. Buccopharyngeal and denticles: (a) Buccal roof, Scanning Electron Microscopy photograph, scale = 0.2 mm, (b) Buccal floor, Scanning Electron Microscopy photograph, scale = 0.2 mm, (c) Individual denticles, scale = 0.02 mm, (d) Jaw sheath serrations = 0.02 mm.