Skip to main content

Li chun horned toad (Boulenophrys lichun) makes mating calls in spring from rock crevices in Ningde City

Li chun horned toad (Boulenophrys lichun) makes mating calls in spring from rock crevices in Ningde City

NEWS - Researchers report Li chun horned toad (Boulenophrys lichun sp. nov.) from the coastal hills of eastern Fujian Province, China, that differs from all known relatives by a combination of morphological character differences and genetic divergence in the mitochondrial 16S + CO1 gene pool.

During a field survey in eastern Fujian, researchers collected a series of Boulenophrys specimens Fei, Ye & Jiang, 2016. Initial morphological examination indicated that the specimens differed from their known relatives by a series of distinct characters.

Subsequent molecular analysis further revealed that these specimens represent a separate evolutionary lineage, showing significant differences from their known relatives. Therefore, the researchers describe it as a new species.

B. lichun is small in size (SVL 33.5–37.0 mm in 5 adult males, SVL 47.1 mm in 1 adult female); rostra canthus well developed, tongue not notched posteriorly; tympanum distinct; vomerine ridge and vomerine teeth present.

Dorsal skin rough and very granular, discontinuous X-shaped ridges in the middle of the back, discontinuous dorsolateral ridges present, rare large tubercles on the sides of the body, dorsal legs with discontinuous transverse ridges and tubercles, ventral skin with prominent solid tubercles.

Outer margin of upper eyelid with prominent small horn-like tubercles, supratympanic folds distinct and narrow, curved posteroventrally above the arms; two metacarpal tubercles distinct, inner tubercles appear enlarged; relative toe length I < II < IV < III; subarticular tubercles distinct at the base of each toe; heels do not meet when hind legs are folded.

Tibio-tarsal articulation reaches from shoulder to posterior corner of eye; (9) toes without webbing and lateral tufts, inner metatarsal tubercles long ovoid, outer tubercles absent, relative toe length I < II < V < III < IV.

Dorsal surface yellowish brown with irregular dark brown spots, and dark brown triangular marking between eyes, dorsal legs and toes light brown with dark brown transverse bands; dense nuptial spines at dorsal base of first and second toes in breeding adults, subgular vocal sac present in males.

B. lichun may have heels that do not meet when hind legs are flexed and perpendicular to the body axis (vs. overlapping heels in most Boulenophrys species; heels just meeting in B. binchuanensis, B. elongata, B. lishuiensis, B. minor, B. xiangnanensis, B. xuefengmontis; heels just meeting or slightly overlapping in B. angka, B. daiyunensis, B. baolongensis, B. wushanensis, B. yunkaiensis).

B. lichun has a distally notched tongue (vs. distally notched tongue in B. brachykolos, B. insularis, B. pepe). B. lichun has vomerine teeth (vs. absent vomerine teeth in B. acuta, B. boettgeri, B. caobangensis, B. daoji, B. hungtai, B. hengshanensis, B. kuatunensis, B. ombrophila, B. obesa, B. shuichengensis, B. wugongensis).

B. lichun has lateral tufts on webbed toes (vs. rudimentary webbed toes in B. dongguanensis, B. fengshunensis, B. nankunensis, B. puningensis; narrow lateral tufts in B. rubrimera).

The new species is known only from the coastal hills of Ningde City, eastern Fujian, China. They inhabit flowing mountain seeps, forest floors and leaf litter. The habitat is surrounded by secondary forest mixed with bamboo groves at elevations of 150-510 m. Males call in February-May in rock crevices.

The specific name is derived from the Chinese Pinyin Lì Chūn, 立春 in Chinese, meaning early spring, the first of the 24 solar terms (24节气) in China. The name refers to the new species' mating season which begins around this time. The song of the new species heralds the arrival of spring in a given year.

Original research

Lin S-S, Chen H-H, Li Y-H, Peng Z-N, Zeng Z-C, Wang J (2024). A new Boulenophrys species (Anura, Megophryidae) from the coastal hills of eastern Fujian Province, China. ZooKeys 1216: 1-15, DOI:10.3897/zookeys.1216.130017

Dlium theDlium
Labels:

Popular Posts

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) manufacture bubble-nets as tools to increase prey intake

NEWS - Humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) create bubble net tools while foraging, consisting of internal tangential rings, and actively control the number of rings, their size, depth and horizontal spacing between the surrounding bubbles. These structural elements of the net increase prey intake sevenfold. Researchers have known that humpback whales create “bubble nets” for hunting, but the new report shows that the animals also manipulate them in a variety of ways to maximize catches. The behavior places humpbacks among the rare animals that make and use their own tools. “Many animals use tools to help them find food, but very few actually make or modify these tools themselves,” said Lars Bejder, director of the Marine Mammal Research Program (MMRP), University of Hawaii at Manoa. “Humpback whales in southeast Alaska create elaborate bubble nets to catch krill. They skillfully blow bubbles in patterns that form a web with internal rings. They actively control details such ...
Read more

Alexandrian Laurel (Calophyllum inophyllum)

Alexandrian Laurel ( Calophyllum inophyllum ) is a species of plant in the Calophyllaceae family. It is a low-branching, slow-growing, spreading tree with a wide, irregular crown. It grows up to 30 meters tall, has a cylindrical trunk, and thick, black, and fissured bark. The leaves are thick, oval, with rounded tips, even margins, and a smooth surface. The upper side is dark green and glossy, the underside is bright green, with a central vein in bright green. The leaves are up to 27 cm long, 13 cm wide, and have a 1 cm petiole. Flowers bloom throughout the year, but typically from April to June and October to December. Flowers are 30 mm in diameter and occur in racemose or paniculate inflorescences of four to 15 flowers. The flowers have a sweet aroma and attract numerous pollinating insects. The fruit is round, green, up to 4 cm in diameter, with a large seed in the center. When ripe, the fruit wrinkles and turns yellow to brownish. The fruit is light, with thin, spongy flesh and a...
Read more

Thomas Sutikna lives with Homo floresiensis

BLOG - On October 28, 2004, a paper was published in Nature describing the dwarf hominin we know today as Homo floresiensis that has shocked the world. The report changed the geographical landscape of early humans that previously stated that the Pleistocene Asia was only represented by two species, Homo erectus and Homo sapiens . The report titled "A new small-bodied hominin from the Late Pleistocene of Flores, Indonesia" written by Peter Brown and Mike J. Morwood from the University of New England with Thomas Sutikna, Raden Pandji Soejono, Jatmiko, E. Wahyu Saptomo and Rokus Awe Due from the National Archaeology Research Institute (ARKENAS), Indonesia, presents more diversity in the genus Homo. “Immediately, my fever vanished. I couldn’t sleep well that night. I couldn’t wait for sunrise. In the early morning we went to the site, and when we arrived in the cave, I didn’t say a thing because both my mind and heart couldn’t handle this incredible moment. I just went down...
Read more