A New Species of Day Gecko of the genus Cnemaspis Strauch, 1887 (Squamata : Gekkonidae) from the Nilgiri Hills, Tamil Nadu, India

Authors

  • B. H. Channakeshava Murthy
     Western Ghats Regional Centre (WGRC), Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Calicut – 673 006, Kerala
  • A. Nitesh
     212/14 Vittoba Kovil, Street Lower Bazaar, Ooty – 643001, Tamil Nadu
  • Shruti Sengupta
     Ananthnagar, Electronic City Phase-II, Electronic City – 560100, Bangalore, Karnataka
  • P. Deepak
     Department of Zoology, Mount Carmel College Autonomous, #58, Palace Road, Vasanth Nagar – 560052, Bangalore, Karnataka

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26515/rzsi/v119/i3/2019/143339

Keywords:

Cnemaspis, Gekkonidae, New Species, Nilgiri Hills, Taxonomy, Western Ghats.

Abstract

Based on the field explorations in the Western Ghats, a day gecko of the genus Cnemaspis 1887 is described from the Nilgiri hill ranges of Tamil Nadu. A medium sized gecko is distinguished from all the other congeners by a set of distinct morphological characters. Current taxonomic issues persisting among the members of genus Cnemaspis reported from the Western Ghats and India are discussed. The new species is found to have restrictive range of distribution in the higher elevations of Nilgiri hills. The discovery of a new high altitude endemic species indicates a need of further explorations in Nilgiri hill ranges.

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Author Biography

B. H. Channakeshava Murthy, Western Ghats Regional Centre (WGRC), Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Calicut – 673 006, Kerala

Zoological Survey of India

Scientist-C

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Published

2019-08-06

How to Cite

Channakeshava Murthy, B. H., Nitesh, A., Sengupta, S., & Deepak, P. (2019). A New Species of Day Gecko of the genus <i>Cnemaspis</i> Strauch, 1887 (Squamata : Gekkonidae) from the Nilgiri Hills, Tamil Nadu, India. Records of the Zoological Survey of India, 119(3), 211–226. https://doi.org/10.26515/rzsi/v119/i3/2019/143339

Issue

Volume 119, Issue 3, 2019

Section

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