A new insular species of the Cyrtodactyluspulchellus group (Reptilia, Gekkonidae) from Tarutao Island, southern Thailand revealed by morphological and genetic evidence

The bent-toed geckos of the Cyrtodactyluspulchellus group are widely distributed along the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Although taxonomic and phylogenetic studies of this species group have been continuously conducted, only some populations from Thailand have been included, resulting in hidden diversity within this group. In this study, we used morphological and molecular data to clarify the taxonomic status and describe a new population from Tarutao Island, Satun Province, southern Thailand. Cyrtodactylusstellatussp. nov. can be distinguished from its congeners by the combination of the following morphological characters: body size; tuberculation; number of dark body bands, ventral scales, and femoroprecloacal pores in males; presence of precloacal pores in females; and scattered pattern on dorsum. Phylogenetic analyses of the mitochondrial ND2 gene recovered the new species as the sister species to C.astrum, with an uncorrected pairwise divergence of 9.78–12.37%. Cyrtodactylusstellatussp. nov. is currently only known from Tarutao Island, Thailand. The discovery of this species suggests that the diversity within the C.pulchellus group remains underestimated and future exploration of unsurveyed areas are needed to further the understanding of this group and its geographic range.