Microhyla laterite sp. nov., A New Species of Microhyla Tschudi, 1838 (Amphibia: Anura: Microhylidae) from a Laterite Rock Formation in South West India

PLoS One. 2016 Mar 9;11(3):e0149727. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0149727. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

In recent times, several new species of amphibians have been described from India. Many of these discoveries are from biodiversity hotspots or from within protected areas. We undertook amphibian surveys in human dominated landscapes outside of protected areas in south western region of India between years 2013-2015. We encountered a new species of Microhyla which is described here as Microhyla laterite sp. nov. It was delimited using molecular, morphometric and bioacoustics comparisons. Microhyla laterite sp. nov. appears to be restricted to areas of the West coast of India dominated by laterite rock formations. The laterite rock formations date as far back as the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary and are considered to be wastelands in-spite of their intriguing geological history. We identify knowledge gaps in our understanding of the genus Microhyla from the Indian subcontinent and suggest ways to bridge them.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Acoustics
  • Animals
  • Anura / anatomy & histology*
  • Anura / classification
  • Ecosystem
  • Female
  • Geography
  • Geologic Sediments*
  • India
  • Likelihood Functions
  • Male
  • Sound Spectrography
  • Species Specificity
  • Vocalization, Animal

Grants and funding

Funded by 1. Rufford Foundation (www.rufford.org), 15102 to RS, 2. The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund (www.speciesconservation.org), 14258557 to KSS, 3. Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Endangered Species Fund to KSS, and 4. Earthwatch Institute India to KVG. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.