An Isolated and Deeply Divergent <i>Hynobius</i> Species from Fujian, China
Zhenqi Wang,
Siti N. Othman,
Zhixin Qiu,
Yiqiu Lu,
Vishal Kumar Prasad,
Yuran Dong,
Chang-Hu Lu,
Amaël Borzée
Affiliations
Zhenqi Wang
The Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Siti N. Othman
Laboratory of Animal Behaviour and Conservation, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Zhixin Qiu
The Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Yiqiu Lu
The Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Vishal Kumar Prasad
Laboratory of Animal Behaviour and Conservation, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Yuran Dong
The Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Chang-Hu Lu
The Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Amaël Borzée
Laboratory of Animal Behaviour and Conservation, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
It is important to describe lineages before they go extinct, as we can only protect what we know. This is especially important in the case of microendemic species likely to be relict populations, such as Hynobius salamanders in southern China. Here, we unexpectedly sampled Hynobius individuals in Fujian province, China, and then worked on determining their taxonomic status. We describe Hynobius bambusicolus sp. nov. based on molecular and morphological data. The lineage is deeply divergent and clusters with the other southern Chinese Hynobius species based on the concatenated mtDNA gene fragments (>1500 bp), being the sister group to H. amjiensis based on the COI gene fragment, despite their geographic distance. In terms of morphology, the species can be identified through discrete characters enabling identification in the field by eye, an unusual convenience in Hynobius species. In addition, we noted some interesting life history traits in the species, such as vocalization and cannibalism. The species is likely to be incredibly rare, over a massively restricted distribution, fitting the definition of Critically Endangered following several lines of criteria and categories of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
