FrogEyes
Active member
Just appeared alongside the description of Tylototriton ziegleri in Current Herpetology: Following recent studies which demonstrated that clawed salamanders consisted of a number of undescribed species and at least three main species groups, the Japanese species have been further revised with the description of Onychodactylus tsukubaensis.
Natsuhiko Yoshikawa and Masafumi Matsui, 2013. A New Salamander of the Genus Onychodactylus from Tsukuba Mountains, Eastern Honshu, Japan (Amphibia, Caudata, Hynobiidae). Current Herpetology 32(1):9-25.
Abstract:
Recent phylogenetic studies using mtDNA and allozymes have revealed the presence of large genetic differentiation within a Japanese clawed salamander, Onychodactylus japonicus, suggesting the presence of several cryptic taxa in this species. Based on morphological analyses, we describe one of them from the Tsukuba Mountains of Ibaraki Prefecture, in the Kanto district of eastern Honshu, as a new species, Onychodactylus tsukubaensis. It is a member of the japonicus species complex of Onychodactylus, and differs from the other species of the complex by a relatively short tail, wide head, and large number of vomerine teeth.
Natsuhiko Yoshikawa and Masafumi Matsui, 2013. A New Salamander of the Genus Onychodactylus from Tsukuba Mountains, Eastern Honshu, Japan (Amphibia, Caudata, Hynobiidae). Current Herpetology 32(1):9-25.
Abstract:
Recent phylogenetic studies using mtDNA and allozymes have revealed the presence of large genetic differentiation within a Japanese clawed salamander, Onychodactylus japonicus, suggesting the presence of several cryptic taxa in this species. Based on morphological analyses, we describe one of them from the Tsukuba Mountains of Ibaraki Prefecture, in the Kanto district of eastern Honshu, as a new species, Onychodactylus tsukubaensis. It is a member of the japonicus species complex of Onychodactylus, and differs from the other species of the complex by a relatively short tail, wide head, and large number of vomerine teeth.
Last edited: