Cnemaspis peninsularis L.L. Grismer, Wood, Anuar, Riyanto, Ahmad, Muin, Sumontha, J.L. Grismer, Onn, Quah & Pauwels, 2014

Figueroa, Alex, Low, Martyn E. Y. & Lim, Kelvin K. P., 2023, Singapore’s herpetofauna: updated and annotated checklist, history, conservation, and distribution, Zootaxa 5287 (1), pp. 1-378 : 98-99

Cnemaspis peninsularis L.L. Grismer, Wood, Anuar, Riyanto, Ahmad, Muin, Sumontha, J.L. Grismer, Onn, Quah & Pauwels, 2014 — Native.

Cnemaspis peninsularis L.L. Grismer, Wood,Anuar, Riyanto,Ahmad, Muin, Sumontha, W.L. Grismer, Onn, Quah & Pauwels, 2014: 118–124, figs. 60, 61. Holotype: LSUHC 8965 , by original designation; paratypes (11): LSUHC 8966 , 4756 , 5731 , 6213 , 8210 , 8126 , 9376 , 10710–11 , 10454 , by original designation. Type locality: “base of Gunung Ledang Johor, Peninsular Malaysia (02°20.25’N, 102°37.11’E)”.

Peninsular Rock Gecko

( Figure 11G ; Dairy Farm Nature Park)

Singapore records.

Gonatodes kendalli (non Gray, 1845)— Flower, 1896: 863 (Bukit Timah [BTNR]).— Hanitsch, 1898: 19.— Flower, 1899: 627 (Bukit Timah [BTNR]).—Ridley, 1899: 193, 205 (Bukit Timah [BTNR]). Boulenger, 1912: 38.— Hanitsch, 1912b: 14.—Sworder, 1925a: 63.—M.A. Smith, 1930: 16.— L.M. Chou, 1995: 147.

Gonatodes kendallii (non Gray, 1845)— M.A. Smith, 1925: 23 .

Cnemaspis kendallii (non Gray, 1845)— Grandison, 1972: 80.— Manthey & Grossmann, 1997: 212.— Cox et al., 1998: 90.—Chan-ard et al., 1999: 23.—Y.L. Werner & L.M. Chou, 2002: 185–196 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve).—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2008: 78, 159.—K.K.P. Lim et al., 2008: 173, 265.— Das, 2010: 202.—L.L. Grismer, 2011a: 112.—L.L. Grismer, 2011b: 330, 334.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2012: 78, 159.—E.K. Chua, 2015: 69.

Cnemaspis kendalli (non Gray, 1845)—K. Lim, 1990a: 10 (Jungle Fall Valley [BTNR]).—K.K.P. Lim & L.M. Chou, 1990: 55.— Denzer & Manthey, 1991: 313.—K.K.P. Lim & Subharaj, 1991: 5 (Rock Path [BTNR]).—K.K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 1992: 122, 151.—K.K.P. Lim, 1993a: 4 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve).—R. Subaraj, 1994: 11 (Rock Path [BTNR]).—L.M. Chou et al., 1994: 105.—K.K.P. Lim, 1994: 223, 331.—R. Subaraj et al., 1995: 5 (“cave at BTNR”).—K. Lim, 1995: 18 (Cave Path [BTNR]; Nee Soon Swamp Forest; Seletar Track [TSHF]).—K.K.P. Lim, 1996: 51.—R. Subaraj, 1996: 101.—R.C.H. Teo & Rajathurai, 1997: 389, 390 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, MacRitchie, Mandai, Nee Soon [NSSF], Pulau Tekong Besar; Upper Seletar).—K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 2002: 150.—P.K.L. Ng et al., 2011: 323.— Groenewoud, 2014c: 239 (Thomson Ridge [TRF]).—H.C. Ho et al., 2015: 29 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve).— Janssen & Sy, 2022: 58, 152.

Cnemaspis sp. —E.K. Chua, 1993: 29.

Cnemaspis peninsularis L.L. Grismer Wood, Anuar, Riyanto, Ahmad, Muin, Sumontha, J.L. Grismer, Onn, Quah & Pauwels, 2014 , 1–147 (Nee Soon Swamp Forest).—M.F.C. Ng, 2014c: 293 (Venus Drive [WNP]).—K.K.P. Lim et al., 2016: 176 (Pulau Tekong).—L.L. Grismer & Quah, 2019: 237.— R.C.H. Teo & Thomas, 2019: 147, 156, 180 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve).—I.S. Law, 2020: 47 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve [main road]).— Janssen & Sy, 2022: 61, 153.—Figueroa, 2022: 2.

Remarks. In 2014, Grismer et al. (2014) split C. kendalli into seven species with the Singapore populations falling under C. peninsularis ( Grismer et al. 2014c) . Specimen LSUHC 10454 collected on 2 June 2011 by Evan S.H. Quah from NSSF is one of the paratypes used in the species description ( Grismer et al. 2014c). Flower (1896) first reported C. peninsularis from Singapore from specimens in NHMUK collected by Ridley and from specimens acquired by himself and Ridley at BTNR. After Flower (1896) described how to find specimens of C. peninsularis , it is surprising that Sworder (1925a) did not make his own observations being that it is rather easy to find at appropriate locations. Notwithstanding, C. peninsularis was not reported again from Singapore for 94 years ( Table 2 ) until one was seen on a brick wall at BTNR on 28 August 1990 ( Lim 1990a). Accordingly, C. peninsularis was only known from BTNR until one was detected at Seletar Track on 11 June 1995 and two were seen at NSSF on 7 July 1995 (Lim 1995). Later, it was stated that a record of C. peninsularis at Pulau Tekong Besar required verification (Teo & Rajathurai 1997), which was indeed substantiated on November 2005 when one individual was photographed there ( Lim et al. 2016). Clearly, BTNR is C. peninsularis’ stronghold given the number of records documented in Teo & Thomas (2019).

Occurrence. Restricted to CNR and surrounding Nature Parks and forests, and PT. Uncommon.

Singapore conservation status. Vulnerable.

Conservation priority. Moderate.

IUCN conservation status. Least Concern [2018].

LKCNHM & NHMUK Museum specimens. Singapore (no locality) : BMNH 1895.1.8.1–3 (no date); Bukit Timah Nature Reserve : BMNH 1896.6 .25.9 (no date) , ZRC.2.3014 (28-Aug-1990) , ZRC.2.3520 (09-Jul-1996) , ZRC.2.4647– ZRC.2.4648 (10-Dec-1999) , ZRC.2.4992 (28-Apr-2001) , ZRC.2.5891 (02-Oct-2003) ; Nee Soon Swamp Forest : ZRC.2.3544 (28-Apr-1997) ; Sime Road Forest : ZRC.2.5644 (21-Mar-2003) .

Additional Singapore museum specimens. Bukit Timah: UMZC.

Singapore localities. Bukit Timah (not specified)—Bukit Timah Nature Reserve—Dairy Farm Nature Park— MacRitchie—Mandai (not specified)—Nee Soon Swamp Forest—Pulau Tekong—Sime Road Forest— Three-stone Hill Forest—Thomson Ridge Forest—Upper Seletar (not specified)—Windsor Nature Park.

Genus Cyrtodactylus Gray, 1827 (5 species)

Figures

FIGURE 11. A) Draco melanopogon, B) Draco quinquefasciatus, C) Draco sumatranus, D) Anolis sagrei, E) Aeluroscalabotes felinus, F) Aeluroscalabotes felinus, G) Cnemaspis peninsularis, and H) Cyrtodactylus consobrinus. Photographs by: Jensen G.H. Seah [A–B], Kelvin K.P. Lim [C, E], Thio Hui Bing [D], Mary-Ruth Low [F], and Alex Figueroa [G–H].