No abstract

A new species of megophryid frog of the genus Leptolalax is described from the Tamdil wetlands of Mizoram State, north-eastern India. L. tamdil new species, is compared with congeners from India and other parts of south-east Asia. The new species is diagnosable in showing the following combination of characters: SVL 32.3 mm in the only male and 31.8 mm in the only female known; dorsum tuberculate; eyelids with tubercles; tympanum and supratympanic fold distinct; supratympanic fold extending to posterior edge of tympanum; macroglands, including preaxillary, pectoral, femoral and ventrolateral glands present; Finger II > I; toe tips not dilated, bearing dermal fringes; relatively long hind limbs, with heels in contact when limbs are held perpendicular to body; dorsum with dark blotches; flanks with small dark blotches; dark tympanic mask present; venter pale; labial bars present and limbs with dark cross-bars.

A second species of the genus Blythia Theobald, 1868, Blythia hmuifang sp. nov., is described on the basis of four specimens originating from Mizoram, India. It differs from Blythia reticulata, the other known species in the genus, by having fewer ventral scales (114–117 vs. 129–149), by having fewer subcaudal scales in males (20–21 vs. 22–32), by the greater proportion of tail length/total length (0.109–0.116 vs. 0.075–0.098), by the colour of the venter (bright orange-red in smaller specimens, cream in the largest specimen vs. black in all ages) and the colouration of the supralabials (lower half pale vs. dark), plus other smaller differences in the colouration and the hemipenis. The distribution of Blythia reticulata is discussed. Morphological data of eight recently collected specimens from Mizoram are given and compared to other populations.

Based on the first molecular phylogenetic analyses of samples from northeast India, specimens referred to Rhabdops from this region are more closely related to the southeast and east Asian natricine genera Opisthotropis Günther, 1872 and Sinonatrix Rossman & Eberle, 1977 (as well as to New World and western Palearctic natricines) than to peninsular Indian (true) Rhabdops. Morphologically, these northeast Indian populations differ from other natricines by having a single (‘fused’ or unpaired) internasal shield and a single prefrontal shield. Given the morphological and phylogenetic distinctiveness of these northeast Indian populations, we refer them to a new genus, Smithophis gen. nov., and transfer Rhabdops bicolor (Blyth, 1854) to Smithophis bicolor comb. nov. Based on morphological and molecular variation within our northeast Indian sample, we additionally describe Smithophis atemporalis sp. nov. from the state of Mizoram.

The present study was conducted to survey and document the ophidian fauna of Reiek Community Reserved Forest, Mamit District, Mizoram, Northeastern India for the first time. Extensive survey for studying the ophidian fauna of Reiek Community Reserved Forest, Mamit District, Mizoram was conducted from October 2018 to September 2019 by using Visual encounter survey (VES) method for sampling. Specimens were caught with the help of a snake hook, tongs and also by hand, then kept in the snake bags. They were euthanized and fixed in 10% buffered formalin and later transferred in 70% ethanol in the