2001

Asiatic Herpetological Research

Vol.9, pp. 101— 106|First Record of the Smooth-Backed Parachute Gecko Ptychozoon lionotum

Annandale 1905 from the Indian Mainland

Samraat Pawar' and Sayantan Biswas 2
Wildlife Institute of India,

Chandrabani, Dehradun- 248 001, India. Present addresses: '3/21, Mohanwadi,

AlandiRoad, Yerawada, Pune-4 11006, India.

230/3 Jheel Road, Calcutta-70003 1 India.
,Abstract.- The smooth-backed parachute gecko, Ptychozoon lionotum is reported from the mainland India for theThe nearest known previous record was from Pegu, Myanmar, about 700 km southeast of the previous
The species was collected in Langtlai and seen in the Ngengpui Wildlife Sanctuary, both in south
Mizoram. The collected individual was kept in captivity for four and a half months, during this time,first time.

location.

opportunistic observations on activity pattern, food habits, escape and parachuting behavior were made. Bothindividuals showed slow, deliberate pre-escape movement previously unrecorded for
Ptychozoon. Information
on morphological characters and morphometric measurements is presented. Explanations for thedisjunctdistribution are discussed.

Key words.-Reptilia,Gekkonidae, Ptychozoon, parachute gecko, Northeast India, Myanmar, distribution,

biogeography, behavior

Ptychozoon is a genus of arboreal geckos distributed
over much of Southeast Asia, primarily in moist tropievergreen and semi-evergreen forests (Brown,1999; Brown et al. 1997; Smith, 1935). At present, six

calspecies are recognized under the genus: Ptychozoon
kuhli,P.

horsfieldii, P. lionotum, P.

intermedium, P.

rhacophorus and P. trinotaterra (Brown et al., 1997;Brown, 1999). To date, the only species reported forIndia

isPtychozoon kuhli, from the Nicobar Islands(De Rooij, 1915; Smith, 1935; Tiwari, 1961). We
present here the first record of the smooth-backed
parachute gecko Ptychozoon lionotum based on tworecords from the state of Mizoram (21°56'N to24°31'N and 92°16'E to 93°26'E) in Northeastern
India (Fig.

20° N1).

The first individual was sighted on 29th June 1998
Lawngtlai town of south Mizoram during a shortsurvey. Subsequently, on 21st April 1999, a secondinindividual was sighted by SP from the vicinity ofNgengpui Wildlife Sanctuary (NWLS; 22°21'24" Noto 22°30'06" N and 92°45'12" E to 92 50'20•' E) in18°N

BAY OF BENGALsouth Mizoram, during a herpetofaunal community
study (Pawar, 1999). We could only collect the firstand although SP could get a superficial
look at the second one before it escaped (see below),individual,

we presume

wassame species as thestraight-line distance between the two sites is only
about 40 km. Both the localities lie in the low to midthat

it16°Ntheelevation region of south Mizoram. The vegetation isof the tropical (moist) evergreen type,corresponding

to Northern Tropical Evergreen Forest (lb/c2; Cham-50

100150lrilom«OT96° EFigure 1. Present record (1) of Ptychozoon lionotum(BNHM 1445) from south Mizoram (India), along withnearest previous record (2) from Pegu (Myanmar).

Vol. 9, p. 102

Asiatic Herpetological Research

2001

Mensural (in mm) and meristic measurements of two specimens of Ptychozoon lionotum The
vouchered record reported here (BMNH 1445) is compared with one of the syntypes (ZSI 2601). The latter specimen was fully discolored and severely mutilated so many characters were not discernable (NA) and so measureTable 1.

ments beyond mm were not possible.
Character

Head length.

2001

2001

Asiatic Herpetological ResearchVol. 9, p. 104

mary evergreen forest above 500 m elevation. The
patch of forest was on a slope at an altitude of approximately 450 m. and the tree (385 cm in girth at shoulder height) was towards the edge of the patch, slightly

down slope, about 3 m from the dirt track and theobservers. The gecko was sitting on the outer ridge ofone of the trunk folds with its head pointing downward, barely visible on the lichen-covered bark. It was
twilight, and upon sighting it. SP observed the animal

for about a minute with the aid of a torch and binocu-

attempting to capture it. Meanwhile, thegecko had apparently become wary and steadilylars before

started moving laterally in the manner of the first indi-vidual away from the two observers, towards the otherside of the trunk and out of sight.

When SP tried todislodge the gecko with a bamboo pole, the animal
rapidly

movedfurther

around thetrunk.

It

then

lumped onto some lianas which were 2.5 m from them lower than its previous position
with its head up. ran further up and vanished into atrunk, landed 1.5

mass of dry branches which were caught in the lianas.
All further attempts to trace the gecko were futile, andwe presume

thateither

thegecko jumped onto

another tree or liana, or fell to the ground somewhere

down slope when the lianas were shaken to dislodge
Hemidactylus frenatus, H. garnoti, Cosymbotus
platyurus and Gekko gecko are four other gekkonines
it.

werethatcommonlyseeninthesamearea.

During its four months of captivity, the individual

was offered a variety of insects, of which it took cockroaches and moths most readily. In the daytime, itremained motionless, either on one of the branches inFigure 2.

Ptychozoon lionotum (Adult female, BNHM

1445) from Mizoram, northeast India.

itsterrarium. or on one of the tar strips at the cornersof the enclosure. Towards evening however, it would

On 6th April 1999. SP, along with his field assistant, spotted the second Ptychozoon at 1820 hrs, next

to a dirt track in a patch of mature evergreen forest

becomeactive,andwas often

observedmovingaround the terrarium. making audible leaps across thecorners of the enclosure. When taken out. its behavior

south of NWLS houndary. -40 km (straight-line)
south of the first locality. NWLS is the only remaining

was very different during day and night. If kept on abranch or tree trunk in the daytime, it would remain

patch of unfragmented. mature primary forest in thearea, characterized by a three-tiered structure, withmotionless with its limbs closely apposed to the trunk,and move only if provoked. If not disturbed for a longtowering, buttressed, deciduous emergents up to 5060m in height, followed by middle and tertiary can-time,

opytrees(Pawar.

1999). This area, especiallytheNgengpui valley, experiences five rainless months, but
the effective dry period is much shorter, with humidto
ity being consistently high during these months due
fine, localized precipitationfrom cloud and fog. This

individual was smaller than the first one and was spotted at a height of 5m on the trunk of a Sterculia

scaphigera tree. The tree is characterized by a deeply
fluted trunk and a smooth but slightly flaking bark,and occurs as a deciduous canopy-emergent

in

pri-

it

would

start

moving slowly withthesameslow, deliberate movement that it had displayed during its capture, either out of sight to the other side of
the branch/trunk, or run up the tree. In the evenings

however,itshowed much more alacrity in trying toescape, often with the same preliminary lateral movement of its body. On two occasions it also resorted tolaunchingitself into the air,and when it fell to theground, remained motionless. This escape behavior
has been earlier observed in these geckos, and remaining immobile ostensibly

makes it difficult to locate

them (Brown et ai, 1997). However, the slow pre-Asiatic Herpetological Research

2001

Vol. 9, p. 105

escape movement that we observed in both the specimens has not been reported before, and we reason thatfor waif-dispersal

this behavior probably aids the gecko to position itselfest dwellers

for parachuting or simply

move out of sight (such as(Caseet al.

1994).

It

has beenobserved that Ptychozoon species are not obligate for(Annandale, 1904; Brown et al. 1997),
and probably are capable of dispersing through bothout disclosing its crypsis. To gain further insights intoand human inhabited areas (Annandale 1904;Brown et al. 1997).

we observed in both thewe
theindividual on seven occaspecimens,
droppedseries of parallel hill ranges runningthe blind side of a tree trunk) inconspicuously, with-thisescape behavior thatsions from heights of 3-5ior.

forestm and observed its behav-

In all instances, the dermal appendages came into

Mizoramdominated by the Lushai Hills, afrom north toissouth and increasing

elevation from west to eastin(Pachuau, 1994). To the west of theseplay apparently due to air resistance, and the gecko
dropped relatively softly on the ground without any

Chittagong

horizontal displacement.

ranges of Myanmar. TheThe ecology and behavior of species of Ptychozoon is poorly known, and there has been muchdiscussion

abouttoits"glide"alleged ability(Gunther, 1864; Smith, 1935; Tiwari, 1961 and refer-lie

theHill tracts of Bangladesh,

ChinHills

hills

lie

theand to the eastand the Arakan Yoma mountainlatter, also running in anorth-south direction, lie between the lowland moist

evergreen forests of south Mizoram and Pegu. Alongthe foothills of the Arakan Yomas, flanking the westernside,lie

more orlesscontiguous rainforests,

has been argued that the dermal

which forms a habitat bridge between these two areas

appendages do not help in gliding, but enhance its
camouflage. However, experimental studies have now
demonstrated that the dermal appendages do allow theextended its range northwards along this route. Thisences therein).

Itgecko to take advantage of air resistance while making long sallies (Heyer and Pongsapipatana, 1970;
Marcellini and Keefer, 1976) andmay serve a dual

(Collins et al. 1991). It is likely that this species has

conjecture will get firmer footing if surveys in these
forests reveal the presence of P. lionotum along these
tracts. The areas beyond the Lushai Hills of Mizoram
and the adjoining Chin Hills of Myanmar in contrast,Keefer, 1976). Recently, Brown et al. (1997),

more arid with relatively dry forests. Moreover,recent surveys have not revealed the presence of Pty-based on their observations of the escape behavior of

chozoon species in these areas, and it is unlikely that it

function in crypsis and escape or locomotion (Marcellini andP.

intermedium in the wild, have argued that "para-chuting" is a more appropriate term than "gliding" todescribe this behavior in these geckoes. Our observations apparently sustain the arguments of Brown et al.

(1997). Further studies on the preflight behavior of

Ptychozoon species may provide interesting insights
into the escape behavior of this extraordinary group.

Biogeographical Notes
The syntype (ZSI 2601 ), collected by Major Beddomeand W. Theobald from Pegu in south Myanmar, waspreviously the northwestern most distribution recordof Ptychozoon (Annandale, 1905; Brown et al. 1997).
The present record thus adds a crucial link to the distributional information for the genus,

theand increases

areexists there (George Zug, pers. comm.).

Our inquiries revealed that not many local people
know of this gecko, but those who did, opined that it
was rarely seen because it mostly "lived high up in thetrees". There have also been unconfirmed reports of afromnorth
Mizoram (Laigecko
Ramthanga, pers. comm.). That this area has been
inadequately surveyed is evident from the fact that theparachutesix-month

herpetofaunal

study

conductedbySP

yielded a number new taxa and distributional records(Pawar, 1999). Further exploration will probably
reveal that Ptychozoon is present in other parts on thisregion, andits

range

may not be as disjunct as itappears now.

known range ca.700 km towards the northwest.

This also adds another case of range disjunction in aAcknowledgments

region that already has numerous examples of taxa
showing dramatic discontinuities in their range (Mani,The Wildlife Preservation Society of India and Wild-1974).

ram.

After the collision of the Indian plate with thelife Instituteof India supported our surveys in Mizo-

We are particularly grateful to the Mizoram

Forest Department for permits and their support in theZokhima was more than a field assistant to us.
Chanda and S.K. Talukdar at ZSI,

Asian mainland in the Eocene (54-36 mybp) (Molnarfield.

and Tapponnier, 1975), Indo-Malayan faunal and floral elements have colonized different parts of theJ.B. Alfred, S.K.

India, resulting in

more Indo-Malayan faunal repre-sentatives within India than vice versa (Das,1996;Mani, 1974). Geckos are notorious for their penchantCalcutta, kindly permitted us to access the collection

and K. Deuti, I. Das and N.C. Gayen helped us toR.M. Brown, I. Das, A. Sinha,N.M. Ishwar and K. Vasudevan provided us with criti-trace the specimens.

calcomments and literature. Aysegul Birand helped

prepare the map for Fig.

2001

Asiatic Herpetological ResearchVol. 9, p. 106

1.

Gekkonidae) and Chrysopelea ornata (Reptilia: Colubridae). Herpetologica 26: 317-319.
Leviton, A. E., Gibbs Jr., R. H., and Dawson, C. E.

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