Comparison of morphological and genetic data from New Zealand forest cave wētā suggests we should recognise the genus Miotopus proposed by Hutton (1898). A new species within this genus is described (Miotopus richardsi sp. nov.). Both Miotopus diversus (Hutton, 1898) and Miotopus richardsi sp. nov. are common in native forests and widespread in New Zealand. Here we provide their known distributions and key traits

Clinal variation can result from primary differentiation or secondary contact and determining which of these two processes is responsible for the existence of a cline is not a trivial problem. Samples from a coastal transect of New Zealand geckos (Woodworthia maculata) identified for the first time a body size cline 7–10 km wide. The larger geckos are almost twice the mass of the small adult geckos. Clines in allele and haplotype frequency were found at two of the four genetic loci examined. Estimated width of the morphological cline was concordant with neither the narrower mtDNA cline (3–7 m) nor the wider nuclear cline (RAG-2; 34–42 km), and cline centers were not coincident. Although the body size cline is narrow compared to the entire range of the species, it is 2–3 orders of magnitude greater than estimates of dispersal distance per generation for these geckos. No evidence of assortative mating, nor of hybrid disadvantage was identified, thus there is little evidence to infer that endogenous selection is maintaining a hybrid zone. We cannot distinguish secondary contact from primary origin of this body size cline but conclude that secondary contact is likely due to the occurrence of mtDNA haplotypes from three distinct clades within the coastal transect and the presence of two frequency clines within this region.