Gekko (Japonicgekko) melli ( Vogt, 1922 )

Lyu, Zhi-Tong, Lin, Chao-Yu, Ren, Jin-Long, Jiang, Ke, Zhang, Yin-Peng, Qi, Shuo & Wang, Jian, 2021, Review of the Gekko (Japonigekko) subpalmatus complex (Squamata, Sauria Gekkonidae), with description of a new species from China, Zootaxa 4951 (2), pp. 236-258 : 247-249

Gekko (Japonicgekko) melli ( Vogt, 1922)

Chresonymy.

Gecko melli — Vogt 1922

Gekko subpalmatus — Pope 1935 (part); Gressitt 1941; Bauer & Günther 1991; Zhao et al. 1999 (part).

Gekko melli — Rösler et al. 2005; Rösler & Tiedemann 2007; Yang et al. 2012.

Gekko (Japonigekko) melli — Wood et al. 2020

Type materials. Lectotype. ZMB 27659 A, adult male, collected by R. Mell from N. O. Kuangtung [= northeastern Guangdong], PR China; designated by Bauer & Günther (1991) . Paralectotype. ZMB 27659 B, juvenile, same data as lectotype; designated by Bauer & Günther (1991) .

Specimens examined. Two adult male and five adult female specimens. Male SYS r000267 ( Fig. 5B 1 ), collect- ed from Mt. Jiulian, Longnan County, Jiangxi Province, PR China; male SYS r000440, and females SYS r000438, 0439, 0451–0452, 0453 ( Fig. 5B 2 ), collected from Mt. Yinping, Dongguan City, Guangdong Province, PR China.

Common name. Mell’s Gecko (in English); meí shì bì hŭ (h氏ŧt).

Etymology. The specific name melli is in reference to the collector Rudolf Emil Mell (1878–1970), who was the director of the German-Chinese Middle School at Canton [= Guangzhou City] and collected many animal specimens in Guangdong. His name appeared in Rösler & Tiedemann (2007) as “Robert Mell” due to a typographical mistake (Herbert Rösler, personal communication).

Revised diagnosis. (1) medium-sized gecko species, SVL 64.5–80.3 in adults; (2) tubercles on dorsal body, limbs and tail absent; (3) eye moderate, ED/HL ratio 0.21–0.24; (4) rostral moderate, RW/HW ratio 0.20–0.22, RW/RH ratio 1.83–2.13; (5) mental elongate transversely, MW/HW ratio 0.14–0.18, MW/ML ratio 1.11–1.56; (6) nares bordered with rostral, internasals 1–2; (7) interorbital scales between anterior corners of the eyes 34–40; (8) midbody scale rows 148–160; (9) ventral scale rows at midbody 44–46; (10) scales between mental and cloacal slit 171–192; (11) subdigital lamellae on first fingers 9–11, on fourth fingers 9–14, on first toes 10–12, on fourth toes 11–14; (12) fingers and toes with distinct webbing; (13) 9–11 precloacal pores in a continuous row in males; (14) a single postcloacal tubercle on both sides; (14) dorsum greyish white to dark brown, with iregular large dark patches between nape and sacrum; (15) top of head with an small incomplete W-shaped marking, and posteriorly followed by a large inverted W-shaped marking on dorsal neck. ( Fig. 6B ).

Hemipenial characteristics ( Fig. 3B ): (1) hemipenis clavate, bilobed, densely covered with denticulate-seamed calyces; (2) sulcus spermaticus centrifugal, bifurcate at half of truncus; (3) lateral welt developed, visible from asulcate side, in contact with sulcus lip; (4) calyces extend to lobes and proximal 1/3 of truncus; (5) tongue-like welt weakly developed; (6) apical folds small, arc-shaped, not in contact with each other; (7) a relatively large and rounded area on the asulcate side of the lobe, calyces on this area not well developed ( Fig. 3B , Ch 7).

Remark. The original description of Gekko (Japonigekko) melli in Vogt (1922) contained no information of locality or designation of type materials. The lectotype and paralectotype was designated by Bauer & Günther (1991) with providing the locality as “N. O. Kuangtung ” [= northeastern Guangdong] while the exact locus is unavailable. The lectotype and paralectotype were redescribed by Rösler & Tiedemann (2007). Currently, this species is recognized from multiple localities in eastern and northeastern Guangdong and neighboring southern Jiangxi ( Yang et al. 2012; this study). G. (J.) melli is also expected to occur in southern Fujian which is geographically related to eastern Guangdong, but confirmation requires further vouchers (see Discussion section).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Localities of specimens and tissue samples of Gekko (Japonigekko) subpalmatus complex used in this study. Provinces names with black labels are those in which members of the G. (J.) subpalmatus complex have been recorded. (1) Chengdu, Sichuan; (2) Mt Emei, Emeishan, Sichuan; (3) Zihuai, Hejiang, Sichuan; (4) Malu, Jinsha, Guizhou; (5) Xikou, Fenghua, Zhejiang; (6) Donghai Canyon, Zhoushan, Zhejiang; (7) Mt. Jiulian, Longnan, Jiangxi; (8) Mt.Yinping, Dongguan, Guangdong; (9) Mt. Yangtai, Shenzhen, Guangdong; (10) Kanghe, Dongyuan, Guangdong; (11) Daping, Puning, Guangdong.

FIGURE 2. Scatter plot of PC1 and PC2 of Principal Component Analysis based on the morphometric measurements, distinguishing species within Gekko (Japonigekko) subpalmatus complex.

FIGURE 3. Sulcate, asulcate, lateral, and apical side of the hemipenis morphology distinguishing species within Gekko (Japonigekko) subpalmatus complex. (A) G. (J.) subpalmatus; (B) G. (J.) melli; (C) G. (J.) cib sp. nov.. Characteristics: (1) lateral welt of the base of the sulcus spermaticus; (2) boundary between naked area and ornamented area; (3) sulcus spermaticus; (4) sulcus lip; (5) tongue-like welt; (6) apical folds; (7) area with undeveloped calyces on asulcate side of the lobe.

FIGURE 5. Morphological features of (A) Gekko (Japonigekko) subpalmatus and (B) G. (J.) melli, in preservative.

FIGURE 6. Living color patterns of (A) Gekko (Japonigekko) subpalmatus, (B) G. (J.) melli, and (C) G. (J.) cib sp. nov..