Taxonomic Relationship of Two Newt Species of Pachytriton Recently Described from China (Amphibia: Urodela: Salamandridae)

Abstract

We assessed the taxonomic relationship of Pachytriton changi Nishikawa, Matsui et Jiang, 2012 and P. xanthospilos Wu, Wang et Hanken, 2012 using partial mitochondrial DNA sequence and found them to be so closely related as to be regarded as conspecific. This result, together with available morphological information, strongly indicates that P. xanthospilos is a subjective junior synonym of P. changi. By this synonymization, southern Hunan and northern Guangdong provinces are shown to be a part of the natural distribution range of P. changi, whose type locality is known only as China. However, known localities in this range are restricted and endangered status of the species is not changed.