First record of Maskey's Burrowing Frog, Sphaerotheca maskeyi (Schleich and Anders, 1998) from Bhutan

Abstract

We report the first record of Maskey's Burrowing Frog, Sphaerotheca maskeyi (Schleich and Anders 1998) in Bhutan based on diagnostic morphological features such as the crepe-like (finely wrinkled) dorsal surface without warts, folds or tubercles with uniform colouration; the tibiotarsal articulation touching the tympanum; an inner metatarsal tubercle distinctly longer than the first toe; smooth skin on throat and breast where it is granular between axilla and groin; no outer metatarsal and tibiotarsal tubercles. Our record of S. maskeyi at Yangpelthang, Norgaygang, Samtse District represents the eastern-most observation of the species, ca. 453 km east of its type locality, Chitwan, Nepal and is the first record for Bhutan. It was recorded at an elevation of 380 metres above sea level on the foothills of the mid-Bhutan Himalayan mountains, well away from the protected area system of Bhutan but not far from the Indian border of West Bengal State’s Jalpaiguri District. This species is listed as Least Concerned by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). However, in Bhutan the species warrants detailed inventory and conservation interventions since it is recorded for the first time from just one location and that too from an area outside the protected area network.