Another new species of Cyrtodactylus Gray, 1927 (Squamata: Gekkonidae) of the angularis group from the karstic landscape of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, central Vietnam

Researchers have identified a new species of Cyrtodactylus, C. hangvaensis sp. nov., within the karstic landscape of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park (PNKB) in central Vietnam. This discovery highlights the park's significance as a biodiversity hotspot and a critical area for conservation. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that C. hangvaensis is closely related to two other species, C. roesleri from PNKB and C. sommerladi from nearby Laos, but it occupies a distinct position in morphospace, distinguishable by unique morphological and color pattern characters. Genetic divergence data further supports its status as a separate species, with uncorrected pairwise sequence divergence ranging from 9.5% to 25.5%. This finding underscores the rich biodiversity of PNKB and the importance of continued exploration and conservation efforts in such unique ecosystems.

DUONG, T. V., VU, L. V., VU, H. T. T., MULCAHY, D., BRAGIN, A. M., JR., N. A. P., & GRISMER, L. L. (2024). Another new species of Cyrtodactylus Gray, 1927 (Squamata: Gekkonidae) of the angularis group from the karstic landscape of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, central Vietnam. Zootaxa, 5471(5), 555–571. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5471.5.3