Zoosyst. Evol. 86 (1) 2010, 5–19 / DOI 10.1002/zoos.200900010 A review of the genus Tropidophorus (Squamata, Scincidae) from Vietnam with new species records and additional data on natural history Nguyen Quang Truong1, 4, Nguyen Van Sang1, Nikolai Orlov2, Hoang Ngoc Thao3, Wolfgang Bhme4 and Thomas Ziegler*,5 1 Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources, 18 Hoang Quoc Viet, Hanoi, Vietnam 2 Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Science, Universitetskaya nab. 1, St. Petersburg 199034, Russia 3 Faculty of Biology, University of Vinh, Vinh City, Nghe An Province, Vietnam 4 Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum Alexander Koenig, Adenauerallee 160, 53113 Bonn, Germany 5 Cologne Zoo, Riehler Straße 173, 50735 Cologne, Germany Abstract Received 11 May 2009 At present, eight species of the water skink genus Tropidophorus are recognized from Accepted 3 August 2009 Vietnam. We provide expanded species descriptions based on new collections and new Published 17 March 2010 distributional and natural history data of all Vietnamese water skinks. In addition, an identification key to the species of Tropidophorus from the Indochinese Peninsula is Key Words presented. morphology distribution natural history Introduction (Hikida et al. 2002; Chuaynkern et al. 2005; Ziegler et al. 2005). The water skink genus Tropidophorus is characterized Our recent field work in Vietnam adds substantially morphologically by having keeled scales and a superfi- to the morphological variation, distribution, and natural cial tympanum. Tropidophorus taxa are furthermore history of the water skinks. Therefore, we offer a re- known to be closely associated with water and they view of Tropidophorus from this country. have a live-bearing reproductive mode (Smith 1923, 1935; Taylor 1963; Hikida et al. 2002; Greer & Biswas 2004). The members of this genus range widely from Material and methods Bangladesh through mainland Southeast Asia and Field surveys were conducted during a period of ten years (1998– southern China, southwards to Malaysia and Indonesia, 2008) in different provinces of Vietnam: Ha Giang, Cao Bang, Lang as well as to the Philippines (Pope 1935; Smith 1935; Son, Quang Ninh, Bac Giang, Hai Duong, Phu Tho, Nghe An, Quang Wen 1992; Ngo et al. 2000; Hikida et al. 2002; Chuayn- Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien–Hue, Quang Nam, Lam Dong, and kern et al. 2005; Ziegler et al. 2005; David & Ineich Dong Nai. Specimens referred to in this paper are deposited in the 2009; Nguyen et al. 2009). The Australian species Tro- collections of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH); pidophorus queenslandiae is now regarded to represent The Natural History Museum (BMNH), London; Institute of Ecology a distinct genus Gnypetoscincus (Wells & Wellington and Biological Resources (IEBR); Zoological Museum, Hanoi Na- tional University (HNUV); Vietnam National Museum of Nature 1984; Cogger 1994). Since 2002, five new species have (VNMN), Hanoi; Musum d’histoire naturelle (MHNG), Geneva; Mu- been described from the Indochinese Peninsula: sum National d’Histoire Naturelle (MNHN), Paris; Royal Ontario T. hangnam, T. latiscutatus, and T. matsuii from Thai- Museum (ROM), Toronto; Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Natur- land, as well as T. murphyi and T. noggei from Vietnam museen, Frankfurt am Main (SMF); Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum * Corresponding author, e-mail: [email protected] # 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim 6 Nguyen,Q.T.etal.:ReviewofTropidophorus (Squamata, Scincidae) from Vietnam Alexander Koenig (ZFMK), Bonn; and Zoological Institute, Russian Description. Moderate-sized Tropidophorus, adult fe- Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg (ZISP). males: SVL 83.2–84.9 mm (n ¼ 2); adult males: SVL Morphological analysis. Measurements were taken with dial calli- 55.7–71.5 mm (n ¼ 2); body strongly dorsoventrally pers to the nearest 0.1 mm. The following abbreviations were used: depressed; head slightly longer than wide, swollen at SVL: Snout-vent length, TaL: Tail length; SE: standard deviation; a.s.l.: above sea level. Scalation: nuchals: enlarged scales behind pa- the temples and distinctly set-off from neck. rietals, paravertebral scales: number of dorsal scales from posterior Upper head scales smooth; snout obtuse, rostral edge of parietals to a point above vent; ventrals in transverse rows: partly visible from above, about 2 times wider than number of scales from first gular to precloacal scales, scale rows at high; supranasal absent; frontonasal undivided, as long position of 10th subcaudal on tail including subcaudal. as wide; prefrontals in contact; frontal about 1 1/2 times If voucher specimens were unavailable for examination, diagnoses longer than the distance to snout, in contact with 2 of species were compiled from literature. anterior supraoculars; supraoculars 4, the first longest, followed by a small postsupraocular; frontoparietals in Taxonomic account contact medially, bordered by 2–3 posterior supraocu- lars; interparietal narrow posteriorly with a transparent Genus Tropidophorus Dumril & Bibron, 1839 spot; parietals large, narrowly in contact or separated by interparietal or a small scale posteriorly, posteriorly Diagnosis. According to Smith (1935), Taylor (1963), bordered by 4 scales on each side; nuchals in 1–2 and Hikida et al. (2002) the following characters were pairs; nostril in single nasal; loreals 2, anterior one selected for diagnosis of the genus: Palatine bones in usually divided into 2 superposed scales, lower anterior contact in middle line of palate; pterygoids without loreal touched by first and second supralabials; preocu- teeth (or reduced to one or two teeth), in contact with lars 2, small; presuboculars 2; superciliaries 5–6, super- each other anteriorly; palatal notch not reaching to level ciliary row nearly completed along the entire length of of centers of eyes; teeth conical; nostril in a single na- lateral edge of supraoculars; lower eyelid with 5–6 sal; frontonasal single or divided; supranasal absent; opaque scales, separated from supralabials by 1–2rows prefrontals, frontoparietals and an interparietal present; of granular scales; supralabials 6, fourth longest and lower eyelid scaly without disc; tympanum superficial; below the eye; a shallow groove on loreal-labial border, dorsal and lateral scales keeled; limbs pentadactyl with from nasal across subocular obliquely downward to the transverse subdigital lamellae. Greer & Biswas (2004) end of fourth supralabial; postocular single, small; post- proposed an additional generic character: anterior and suboculars 3–4, most lower one in contact with fourth posterior corners of eyelids contained within a single, and fifth supralabials; primary temporals 3; secondary wrap-around scale. temporals 3; tympanum superficial, ovoid; mental rounded anteriorly; postmental undivided, in contact with first infralabial; infralabials 5, first longest; chin- Tropidophorus baviensis Bourret, 1939 shields in 3 pairs, first pair in contact medially, second Figures 1a, 3a pair separated by a small gular scale or touching in one point, and third pair separated by three scales. Type. Holotype: MNHN 1948.63. Midbody scales in 28–30 rows; 11 scale rows at po- Type locality. Mt. Ba Vi, Ha Tay Province (now Hanoi), Vietnam, alti- sition of tenth subcaudal on tail; dorsal scales subequal tude: 400 m a.s.l. to ventral scales, imbricate; scales on nuchal region fee- Common name. Bavi water skink. bly keeled; vertebral scale rows keeled but not widened, outer dorsal scale rows strongly keeled; paravertebral Diagnosis. Upper head scales smooth; frontonasal undi- scales 47–49; lateral scales strongly keeled, straight vided; prefrontals in contact with each other; loreals 2, backward; dorsal and lateral scales on tail distinctly anterior one usually divided; superciliaries 5–7, super- keeled, strongly mucronate; ventral scales smooth, 44– ciliary row nearly completed along the entire length of 49 transverse rows from first gular to precloacals; two lateral edge of supraoculars; nuchals in 1–2 pairs; su- enlarged precloacals, left one overlapped by right one pralabials 6, fourth below the eye; infralabials 5; post- in three specimens, right one overlapped by left one in mental undivided; midbody scales in 28–30 rows; 11 one specimen (IEBR A.0744); postcloacal pores absent scale rows at position of tenth subcaudal on tail; para- in both males and females; subcaudals enlarged, 2 vertebral scales 47–69; ventrals in 44–49 transverse times as broad as neighboring scales, smooth, the first rows; 2 enlarged precloacals; subdigital lamellae 18–22 divided; scales on forelimbs distinctly keeled, imbri- under fourth toe (Bourret 1939, 2009; Ngo et al. 2000; cate; those on hindlimbs keeled dorsally, smooth ven- our own data). trally; subdigital lamellae smooth, numbering 13–15 Specimens examined. Five specimens: IEBR A.0744 (adult female), under fourth finger and 18–21 under fourth toe. A.0753 (adult male), IEBR A.0754 (subadult), and ZFMK 87588 Coloration (in alcohol). Head uniform brown, supra- (adult female) collected by Hoang Ngoc Thao and Dau Quang Vinh, labials darker with some white spots; dorsum dark 17–23 December 2006, in Chau Quang Commune (192004200 N, 1050900300 E), Quy Hop District, Nghe An Province; VNMN T-181 brown with cream markings forming irregular broken (adult male) collected by Nguyen Thien Tao in August 2008, within bands: 1–3 on neck, 6–8 on body, and 3–6 on tail; Xuan Son National Park, Thanh Son District, Phu Tho Province. flanks dark brown with some light markings or spots; museum-zoosyst.evol.wiley-vch.de