Pseudocalotes, Grismer, L. Lee, Quah, Evan S. H., Wood, Perry L., Anuar, Shahrul, Muin, Abdul, Davis, Hayden R., Murdoch, Matthew L., Grismer, Jesse L., Cota, Michael & Cobos, Anthony J., 2016

Grismer, L. Lee, Quah, Evan S. H., Wood, Perry L., Anuar, Shahrul, Muin, Abdul, Davis, Hayden R., Murdoch, Matthew L., Grismer, Jesse L., Cota, Michael & Cobos, Anthony J., 2016, Dragons in the mist: three new species of Pseudocalotes Fitzinger (Squamata: Agamidae) from the sky island archipelago of Peninsular Malaysia, Zootaxa 4136 (3), pp. 461-490 : 485

Variation in Pseudocalotes flavigula

Smith (1924) described Pseudocalotes flavigula from a single specimen collected from the mossy forest along Brinchang Trail in Cameron Highlands ( Fig. 13 ). Smith’s (1924) description was rather brief but was significantly augmented by Grismer (2011) with the examination of another specimen collected from Brinchang Trail (ZRC 2.5162) reported by ( Leong 2001) and an additional specimen from Tanah Rata (FMNH 143903). Meristic variation among five of the six known specimens is presented in Table 5 . The color pattern in P. flavigula is quite variable ( Fig. 12 ). The dark, dorsal bands range from brown to black and from to distinct and diffuse to barely visible. The light-colored upper lip, lateral throat and proximal section of the brachium can range from immaculate white to lime-green and it may or may not extend onto the anterior portion of the flanks. There is considerable variation in overall ground color that ranges from dull-white to lime-green which we attribute to substrate matching ( Fig. 12 ).

We obtained a series of close-up photographs of a juvenile male Pseudocalotes (THNHM 25890) collected at 1400 m in elevation from a montane region in the Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary, Betong District, Yala Province, Thailand along the Thai-Malay border. This habitat is contiguous with the Banjaran Titiwangsa and the data taken from the photographs—most notably the color pattern and the enlarged, plate-like flank scales ( Fig. 14 )—clearly align this specimen with the flavigula-viserion clade but until the specimen can be examined it will be recognized here as Pseudocalotes sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURE 12. Pseudocalotes flavigula from Cameron Highlands, Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia. Upper left: Juvenile from Tanah Rata (LSUDPC 9902, photo by Zhaharil Dzulkafly). Middle left; Adult female from Brinchang Trail (LSUDPC 4350, photo by Leong Tzi Ming). Lower left and right: Adult male from Tanah Rata (LSUHC 12420, photo by L. Lee Grismer). Upper right and middle, respectively: Adult females from Tanah Rata (LSUHC 12581) and Brinchang Trail (LSUHC 12580); photos by Evan S. H. Quah.

FIGURE 13. Mossy forest habitat of Pseudocalotes flavigula at Brinchang Trail, Cameron Highlands, Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia. Photograph by L. Lee Grismer.

FIGURE 14. Pseudocalotes sp. nov., from the Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary, Betong District, Yala Province, Thailand. Photograph by Sunchai Makchai.