Abstract
The Asian Tree Toad genus Pedostibes, as currently understood, exhibits a conspicuously disjunct distribution, posing several immediate questions relating to the biogeography and taxonomy of this poorly known group. The type species, P. tuberculosus and P. kempi, are known only from India, whereas P. hosii, P. rugosus, and P. everetti are restricted to Southeast Asia. Several studies have shown that these allopatric groups are polyphyletic, with the Indian Pedostibes embedded within a primarily South Asian clade of toads, containing the genera Adenomus, Xanthophryne, and Duttaphrynus. Southeast Asian Pedostibes on the other hand, are nested within a Southeast Asian clade, which is the sister lineage to the Southeast Asian river toad genus Phrynoidis. We demonstrate that Indian and Southeast Asian Pedostibes are not only allopatric and polyphyletic, but also exhibit significant differences in morphology and reproductive mode, indicating that the Southeast Asian species’ are not congeneric with the true Pedostibes of India. As a taxonomic solution, we describe a new genus, Rentapia gen. nov. to accommodate the Southeast Asian species.
Highlights
Asian Tree Toads of the genus Pedostibes Günther, 1876 comprise five allopatric species, with P. tuberculosus restricted to the Western Ghats of India [1] and P. kempi, known only from the Garo Hills in the northeastern part of the Indian subcontinent
Only male specimens of Pedostibes tuberculosus, P. hosii and P. rugosus were included in analyses
discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC) relies on data transformation using principal component analysis (PCA) as a prior step to discriminant analysis (DA), ensuring that variables included in the DA are uncorrelated and number fewer than the sample size [19]
Summary
Asian Tree Toads of the genus Pedostibes Günther, 1876 comprise five allopatric species, with P. tuberculosus restricted to the Western Ghats of India [1] and P. kempi, known only from the Garo Hills in the northeastern part of the Indian subcontinent. P. hosii, P. rugosus, and P. everetti, are known from Southeast Asia. Of Pedostibes and Description of a New Genus re-assigned to the genus Pedostibes [8]. This re-allocation was justified on the basis of the presence of eight pre-sacral vertebrae and in possessing the coccy articulated by two small, but distinctly separated condyles, which was found common to the Indian P. tuberculosus and the Southeast Asian species [8]
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