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Paramesotriton zhijinensis described, and described again

FrogEyes

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The description of this species was first announced in the warty newt fora, here:


http://www.caudata.org/forum/f1173-...ytriton/55190-paramesotriton-zhijinensis.html


However, it never appeared in the taxonomy threads, and a rather important bit of information has been missed until now, so I will rehash and elaborate here.


Yesterday I was doing what I do ...well, pretty much all the time: I was digging for “new” herpetological literature, especially that pertaining to Asian salamanders.


As I proceeded back through the publications of 2008, I encountered a paper which raised my eyebrow. Don't I have this one? If so, how did I miss all of these other interesting papers? I normally search for more when I get one. My first response is to check my database/spreadsheet of known salamander taxa. Sure enough, there it is, but what I see is a different set of authors in a different journal. Did I mix up P.longliensis perhaps with P.zhijinensis in my records? Well, I found the pdf and opened it. Hm. My records are correct. I have two separate descriptions of the same species. I check the dates – Zootaxa published in May 2008, Acta Zootaxonomica Sinica in April 2008. Well, if THAT is right, then the previously posted description is NOT the formally accepted one for naming purposes. Keeping in mind that in 2008, online publishing didn't count for new names, and published dates are not necessarily the actual dates of distribution, I double check with Frost – ASW 6.0. Sure enough, there is no information on when the two papers were actually distributed, which means AZS comes first.


In formal terms, this basically just means that the name 'belongs' to a different set of authors. In more practical terms though, it means that we the hobbyists and husbanders now have TWO sets of original descriptions of the animals, their biology and habitats, and two sets of photos. Since AZS is open-access it also means that we all have free access to at least one of these papers, so enjoy!


Haitao ZHAO, Jing CHE, Weiwei ZHOU, Yongxiang CHEN, Haipeng ZHAO & Ya-ping ZHANG, 2008 (May). A new species of Paramesotriton (Caudata: Salamandridae) from Guizhou Province, China. Zootaxa 1775: 51–60.​


Abstract​

We describe a new species of salamander, Paramesotriton zhijinensis, from Guizhou Province, China. The generic allocation of the new species is based on morphological and molecular characters. In morphology, it is most similar to Paramesotriton chinensis but differs in having distinct gland emitting a malodorous secretion (here named scent gland), a postocular stripe, and two non-continuous, dorsolateral stripes on the dorsolateral ridges. Furthermore, neoteny was observed in most individuals of the new species. This has not been previously reported to occur in any other species of Paramesotriton. Analysis of our molecular data suggests that this species a third major evolutionary lineage in the genus Paramesotriton.​

Song LI, Ying-zhou TIAN, Xiao-ming GU, 2008. A new species of the genus Paramesotriton (Caudata, Salamandridae). Acta Zootaxonomica Sinica, 33(2): 410- 413.​


Abstract​

A new species Paramesotriton zhijinensis sp. nov. has been recognized based on the collections from Shuangyantang, Zhijin County, Guizhou Province during the periods from 4 May 2007 to 12 May 2007. The type specimens are kept in the Department of Biology Liupanshui Teachers, Higher College.​
*note* in Chinese​
 
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