Fejervarya zhoushanensis, Tong & Wang & Xu & Guo & Guo & Shi & Jin, 2025

Tong, Haojie, Wang, Kaixin, Xu, Jun, Guo, Junru, Guo, Yaxin, Shi, Shuangyue & Jin, Yuanting, 2025, A new species in the Fejervarya limnocharis species complex (Amphibia: Dicroglossidae), Zootaxa 5660 (4), pp. 529-546 : 538-540

Fejervarya zhoushanensis sp. nov.

( Figs. 5–8)

Diagnosis

A species that has independent systematic taxonomic status in F. limnocharis species complex. It is genetically closest to F. kawamurai , both sister lineages diverge last in the complex. The adult SVL is 35.0– 46.3 mm in males, 33.7–50.1 mm in females ( Table 2). This new species is differentiated from F. kawamurai by larger snout-to-vent length (SVL), longer head length (HL), larger eye diameter (ED) and aeddistance between anterior corners of eyes (AED), longer forearm length (FLL) and foot length (FL) for both sexes; in larger tympanum diameter (TD), snout length (SL) and inner metatarsal tubercle length (IMTL) for males; in longer hindlimb length (HLL) for females.

Holotype

CJLU ZSBD01 M ( Fig. 5). An adult female collected from paddy field in the main island of Zhoushan Archipelago, Zhejiang, China (122.2125° E, 30.0749° N, alt. 10.2 m a.s.l) on July, 2024 by Haojie Tong and Yuanting Jin.

Paratypes

Four paratypes were collected from Zhoushan Archipelago in July , 2024 by Haojie Tong and Yuanting Jin. CJLU ZSBD02 F (adult female, Fig. 6A, E) and CJLU ZSBD03 M (adult male, Fig. 6B, F) were collected at the same locality as the holotype. CJLU ZSDS04 F (adult female, Fig. 6C, G) and CJLU ZSDS05 M (adult male, Fig. 6D, H) were collected from Daishan island (122.1515° E, 30.2621° N, alt. 14.2 m a.s.l) .

Description of holotype

Adult female, SVL 43.12 mm ( Fig. 5). Head triangular, longer than wide, HW/HL 88%; HL/SVL 33%; HW/SVL 29%. Snout slightly pointed in dorsal and lateral views. Nostrils subcircular with low dermal flaps, below canthus, slightly closer to tip of snout (2.75 mm) than to eye (2.93 mm); canthus rostralis indistinct and slightly convex; loreal region slightly concave; ED/HW 36% and ED/HL 32%; IOD/IND 89% and IOD/UEW 81%; distance between posterior tips of eyes (8.76 mm) is wider than distance between anterior tips of eyes (5.11 mm). Tympanum distinct, round, small, TD/ED 60%; distance between eye and tympanum (0.92 mm) is about 1/3 of TD. Tympanic annulus rounded, with upper portion hidden by the supratympanic fold. Supratympanic fold evident from the upper part of the tympanum to close to the insertion of the arm. Tongue deeply notched, without papillae. Vomerine teeth in short with two barely separated transverse series. Vocal sac subgular, median, externally expanded, like a bilobate shape when deflated and inflated, on each side of mouth.

Forelimbs moderately hypertrophied; upper arm thinner than forearm. Fingers thin, short, unwebbed, fringed; finger tips bluntly rounded and not enlarged to disks; relative finger length III>I>IV>II ( Fig. 7A). Subarticular tubercles single, rounded, prominent; prepollex oval, prominent; two oval, distinct palmar tubercles; supernumerary tubercles absent.

Hindlimbs relatively long, about 1.2 times length of SVL, TL/HLL 33%, FL/HLL 37%. Toes long and thin, toe tips blunt, slightly rounded, not enlarged to disks, relative toe length IV>III>V>II>I ( Fig. 7B). Subarticular tubercles single, prominent and oval-shaped. Inner metatarsal tubercle single and elliptical, IMTL/1TL 67%; outer metatarsal tubercle single and round. Toe webs feeble, webbing formula: I1–2II1– 21/2 III2–3IV3–1V ( Fig. 7B). Cloacal opening directed posteriorly at upper level of thighs.

Skin texture on dorsal and lateral surface of head, body and body flanks shagreened. Distinct, round glandular warts on whole parts of dorsum, continuing on dorsal surfaces of legs and arms. Small and scattered tubercles present on ventral surface of thighs, sub-cloacal region. Skin smooth on abdomen, ventral surfaces of forelimbs, tibiae, and tarsi. Dorsal skin showing small and longitudinal dermal ridges arranged in series.