Abstract
A phylogenetic taxonomy of species in the Cyrtodactylus peguensis group from the Ayeyarwady Basin of Myanmar is constructed based on color pattern, morphology, and molecular systematic analyses using the mitochondrial gene NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2. Newly collected samples from the type locality of C. peguensis and other localities indicate that this clade is endemic to central Myanmar and contains at least seven species, four of which are undescribed. Three species, including C. peguensis occur in the low hills of the Bago Yoma Range within the central portion of the Ayeyarwady Basin. Two of these, C. myintkyawthurai sp. nov. from the northern and central Bago Yoma and C. meersi sp. nov. which is syntopic with C. peguensis in the southern Bago Yoma are described herein. As more lowland hilly areas bordering, and within the Ayeyarwady Basin are surveyed, more new species of this group are likely to be discovered. These discoveries continue the recent surge of descriptions of new species of Cyrtodactylus that are being discovered in Myanmar.
Highlights
The Gekkota comprises one of the most diverse lizard lineages in the world, containing approximately 1,777 species to date (Uetz, Freed & Hošek, 2018)
All but one of the Burmese populations included in the analyses that have been formally or informally considered conspecific with or allied to C. peguensis are recovered as a monophyletic group
The specimen (CAS 22143) not included in the peguensis group from Aung Ya Village, Rakhine State was recovered as an undescribed sister species to C. ayeyarwadyensis Bauer
Summary
The Gekkota (geckos and pygopods) comprises one of the most diverse lizard lineages in the world, containing approximately 1,777 species to date (Uetz, Freed & Hošek, 2018). Within the Gekkota, Bent-toed Geckos (Cyrtodactylus Gray) are the most speciose genus, but the most rapidly growing in terms of the annual rate of newly described species (Uetz, Freed & Hošek, 2018). This is especially true throughout Indochina and Sundaland with the Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar being no exception. 19 to 34 (79%) in just the last year alone (see Grismer et al, 2017a, 2018a, 2018b) This increase in diversity is not due to molecular analyses partitioning out species groups and adjusting the taxonomy but rather it is the result of discoveries made during recent expeditions into some of the more remote regions of the country
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