Description of a new music frog (Anura, Ranidae, <i>Nidirana</i>) critically endangered in Taiwan.

ABSTRACT: Nidiranaokinavana (Boettger, 1895) is a small-sized ranid species belonging to the East Asian genus Nidirana Dubois, 1992. Previous studies have indicated that this species was exclusively distributed on Ishigaki and Iriomote islands in the southern Ryukyus, as well as two extremely small wetland habitats in central Taiwan. Such a restricted distribution makes it one of the most endangered frog species in both Taiwan and Japan. By using molecular, morphological, and acoustic analyses, our study reveals significant divergence between the Taiwanese and Japanese clades, supporting the recognition of the Taiwanese clade as a distinct species, described herein as Nidiranashyhhuangi sp. nov. Compared to Nidiranaokinavana sensu stricto from the southern Ryukyus,

SUBMITTER: Lin CF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11886882 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature