A new rock-dwelling gecko of the subgenus Japonigekko (Squamata, Gekkonidae, Gekko) from northwestern Sichuan Province, China

We describe a new rock-dwelling species of the genus Gekko (subgenus Japonigekko) from Heishui County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China, based on both morphological and molecular (1,574 bp from the mitochondrial 16 S rRNA and ND 2 genes) evidence. Morphologically, Gekko tesselatus sp. nov. is characterized by its moderate body size; two (rarely one) enlarged postmentals; flattened dorsal tubercles extending from the posterior head through the neck to the anterior portion of the tail, arranged in 12–15 rows at midbody; 130–157 ventral scales between the mental and the cloacal slit; 98–106 midbody scale rows; 31–39 ventral scale rows; subdigital lamellae numbering 7–10 on finger I, 9–12 on finger IV, 7–9 on toe I, and 9–12 on toe IV; absence of webbing; 6–8 precloacal pores in males and absence in females; one (rarely two) postcloacal tubercle on each side; and a distinctive dorsal coloration.

Phylogenetically, the new species forms a distinct clade within the subgenus Japonigekko, showing uncorrected 16 S sequence divergences of at least 8.2 % from its closest relative, G. liboensis, and at least 8.9 % from all other congeners, as well as ND 2 divergences of at least 14.3 % from G. fengshanensis and at least 14.9 % from other species in the subgenus. The discovery of this new species raises the number of Japonigekko species recorded in China to 26 and in Sichuan Province to seven.