Cyrtodactylus houaphanensis sp. nov.

(Fig. 2)

Holotype. One adult male, IEBR A.2013.109, collected by Alexandre Teynié in June 2013 from Houaphan Province, near Viengxai, at an elevation of 850 m a.s.l.

Diagnosis. The new species can be distinguished from all its congeners by a unique combination of characters: SVL 75.8 mm; supralabials 9 or 10; infralabials 8 or 9; ventral scales 35; dorsal tubercles in 20 rows at midbody; precloacal pores in the male 6; femoral pores absent; subcaudals enlarged; five irregular, brown bands between limb insertions.

Description of holotype. Adult male, SVL 75.8 mm; tail regenerated (TaL 59.1 mm); head depressed (HL/HW 1.4), distinct from neck; snout scales small, homogeneous, granular, larger than those in frontal and parietal regions; rostral wider than high (RW 3.8 mm, RH 2.6 mm), square-shaped, medially with a straight, vertical suture, in contact with nasorostral, nare, and first supralabial on each side; internasal single; nares oval, surrounded by supranasal, rostral, first supralabial, and three postnasals; supralabials 9 or 10; ears oval; mental triangular, slightly narrower than rostral (MW 3.3 mm), in contact with two enlarged postmentals and the first infralabial on each side, postmentals surrounded by first infralabial on each side (and second on right side) and seven granular scales posteriorly, two outer ones enlarged; infralabials 8 or 9; gular scales granular; scales between fifth supralabials across the dorsal head surface in 43 rows; scales between anterior corners of eye orbits 31; interorbital region with small, round or oval, convex scales; dorsal surface of head with enlarged tubercles; pupil vertical (Fig. 3 a–d).

Dorsal scales granular to flattened; dorsal tubercles on head, back and tail base conical, each surrounded by 8 or 9 granular scales, in 20 irregular longitudinal rows at midbody; scales around midbody 127; ventral scales smooth, medial scales 2 or 3 times larger than dorsal scales, round or oval, in 35 longitudinal rows at midbody; scales between mental and cloacal slit 184; ventrolateral folds present; precloacal groove absent; femoral scales enlarged, femoral pores absent; precloacal scales enlarged, precloacal pores 6; postcloacal tubercles 2 on each side; subcaudals enlarged (Fig. 3e); tubercles on forelimbs absent, present on hindlimbs; fingers and toes free of webbing; lamellae under fourth finger 17, under fourth toe 19–21 (Table 1).

Coloration in life: Ground color of dorsal head and back dark brown with a yellow pattern; a discontinuous nuchal loop, extending from posterior corner of the eye above tympanum to the neck, dark brown, ending in two dark spots; head with dark brown blotches; dorsum with five irregular and sometimes interrupted dark brown bands on the back between limb insertions; ventral surface yellowish-beige; dorsal surface of fore and hind limbs with irregular dark bands; regenerated tail with irregular dark brown and beige pattern (Fig. 2).

Comparisons. We compared the new species with its congeners from Laos (Table 2) and with other Cyrtodactylus from the Indochina region including Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia (Table 3). Morphologically, C. houaphanensis sp. nov. resembles the members of the C. wayakonei group due to the low amount of precloacal pores. Therefore, below we compared the new species with members of the C. wayakonei species group.

Morphologically, C. houaphanensis sp. nov. is most similar to the genetically only distantly related C. chauquangensis Hoang, Orlov, Ananjeva, Johns, Hoang & Dau from Vietnam but can be distinguished from the latter species in morphology by its smaller size (SVL 75.8 mm vs. 91–99.3 mm), having generally fewer infralabials (8 or 9 vs. 9–11), and the presence of an internasal scale which is absent in C. chauquangensis (Hoang et al. 2007).

From its sister species C. puhuensis Nguyen, Yang, Le, Nguyen, Orlov, Hoang, Nguyen, Jin, Rao, Hoang, Che, Murphy & Zhang, the new species differs by the absence of enlarged femoral scales (vs. presence), and having slightly more precloacal pores in males (6 vs. 5).

The new species has enlarged subcaudal scales and thus differs from the following species which are lacking enlarged subcaudals: C. bobrovi Nguyen, Le, Pham, Ngo, Hoang, Pham & Ziegler; C. otai Nguyen, Le, Pham, Ngo, Hoang, Pham & Ziegler; C. vilaphongi Schneider, Nguyen, Le, Nophaseud, Bonkowski & Ziegler; C. wayakonei Nguyen, Kingsada, Rösler, Auer & Ziegler.

The new species is lacking femoral pores in males and thus differs from the following species which have femoral pores in males: C. huongsonensis Luu, Nguyen, Do & Ziegler; C. soni Le, Nguyen, Le & Ziegler; C. sonlaensis Nguyen, Pham, Ziegler, Ngo & Le; C. muangfuangensis Sitthivong, Luu, Ha, Nguyen, Le & Ziegler; and the new Cyrtodactylus species described below.

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The new species differs from C. cucphuongensis Ngo & Chan by the absence of enlarged femoral scales (vs. present), the presence of precloacal pores in males (vs. absent), and having fewer ventral scales (35 vs. 42); from C. martini Ngo by the absence of enlarged femoral scales (vs. present), having more precloacal pores in males (6 vs. 4), and having fewer ventral scales (35 vs. 39–43); from C. spelaeus Nazarov, Poyarkov, Orlov, Nguyen, Milto, Martynov, Konstantinov & Chulisov by having fewer precloacal pores in males (6 vs. 8–9), by its smaller size (75.8 mm vs. 91 mm) and by having a different color pattern of dorsum (banded vs. blotched); from C. taybacensis Pham, Le, Ngo, Ziegler & Nguyen by its smaller size (maximum SVL 75.8 mm vs. 97.5), the absence of enlarged femoral scales (vs. present), and having fewer precloacal pores in males (6 vs. 11–13).

Natural history notes. The holotype was found on a large rock partially covered with vegetation 1.2 m above the ground. A second specimen was observed active at the bottom of a rock cavity 2 m above the ground. Both specimens were discovered on a steep rock at night (20:30–20:45) during the rainy season at the foot of a limestone cliff of the karst formations. The adjacent lowland was mainly covered with various small-scale agricultural crops, patches of secondary forests and some scrub and grasslands, where no large primary forest remained.

Distribution. Cyrtodactylus houaphanensis sp. nov. is currently known only from the type locality in Houaphan Province, Laos.

Etymology. We name this species after its type locality in Houaphan Province, Laos and propose Houaphan Bent-toed Gecko as a common name.