UNVEILING MISIDENTIFICATION OF FORMERLY REPORTED Microhyla fissipes - 1 - Research Article

Aug 27, 2026

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Sumatra is recognized as a key land-bridge enabling dispersal of amphibians between mainland Asia and the Indonesian archipelago. This study revises the identification of “Microhyla sp. aff. fissipes” from Sumatra to M. mukhlesuri using combined molecular and morphological evidence. It also provides the first site records for M. mantheyi and M. butleri in Sumatra, reconfirming diagnostic characters from original descriptions and documenting morphological variation among the Sumatran populations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

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Pages15

Reading Time38 min

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Abstract

Introduction

Material and Methods

Sampling

TAPROBANICA, ISSN 1800–427X. November, 2024. Vol. 13, No. 02: pp. 88–100, pls. 24–25. © Research Center for Climate Change and Department of Biology , Faculty of Mathematics & Natural Sciences, University of Indonesia, Depok 16424, INDONESIA. [http://www.taprobanica.org](http://www.taprobanica.org) [https://doi.org/10.47605/tapro.v13i2.334](https://doi.org/10.47605/tapro.v13i2.334) UNVEILING MISIDENTIFICATION OF FORMERLY REPORTED Microhyla fissipes BOULENGER, 1884 (ANURA: MICROHYLIDAE) WITH NOTES ON TWO Microhyla SPECIES FROM SUMATRA Section Editor: Vladislav Gorin Submitted: 19 September 2024, Accepted: 20 November 2024 Vestidhia Y. Atmaja 1,2, Rury Eprilurahman3 *, Misbahul Munir4, Eric N. Smith5, Tuty Arisuryanti3, Rosichon Ubaidillah6 & Amir Hamidy6 1 Doctoral Study Program, Department of Tropical Biology, Faculty of Biology, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Jl. Teknika Selatan, Sekip Utara, Sleman 55281, Yogyakarta, Indonesia 2 Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Bengkulu, Jl. W.R. Supratman, Kandang Limun, Bengkulu City 38371, Bengkulu, Indonesia 3 Department of Tropical Biology, Faculty of Biology, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Jl. Teknika Selatan, Sekip Utara, Sleman 55281, Yogyakarta, Indonesia 4 Penggalang Herpetologi Indonesia (Herpetological Society of Indonesia), Jl. Ulin, Kampus IPB Dramaga, Bogor 16680, West Java, Indonesia 5 Amphibian and Reptile Diversity Research Center, Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA 6 Research Center for Biosystematics and Evolution, National Research and Innovation Agency, Jl. Raya Jakarta-Bogor Km 46, Cibinong, Bogor 16911, West Java, Indonesia *Corresponding author. Email: [rurybiougm@ugm.ac.id](rurybiougm@ugm.ac.id) Abstract Sumatra is widely recognized as a land bridge for the dispersal of amphibians between mainland Asia and the rest of the Indonesian Archipelago. Currently, six species of Microhyla are recognized in Sumatra: M. gadjahmadai, M. nakkavaram, M. palmipes, M. sundaica, M. superciliaris, and M. sriwijaya. Pradana et al. (2017) identified some Microhyla specimens from Sumatra as M. fissipes using molecular analysis (partial sequence of 16S mtDNA) . Meanwhile, Yuan et al. (2016) restricted the distribution of M. fissipes to the northeast of the Red River Valley and Taiwan. In this study, we have revised the identification of ‘Microhyla sp. aff. fissipes’ Sumatra sensu Pradana et al. (2017) to M. mukhlesuri, based on both molecular and morphological analyses. Additionally, we report the first site records of M. mantheyi and M. butleri from Sumatra. We reconfirm the diagnostic characters based on their original descriptions and report on the morphological variation of the Sumatran populations of these three species. Keywords: 16S mtDNA, morphology, M. butleri, M. mantheyi, M. mukhlesuri, systematics Introduction Sumatra is one of the Greater Sunda Islands of Indonesia. It has a unique geographic amalgamation of the four continental blocks of East Malaya, Sibumasu, West Sumatra, and Woyla terranes, influenced by complex tectonic activity (Voris 2000, Hall 2012, 2013) . These processes have created diverse ecosystems in mountains, plateaus, and valleys, such as tropical rainforests, peat swamps, and mangrove forests, providing a wide variety of habitats for flora and fauna (Inger & Voris 2001, Lohman et al. 2011) . During glacial periods, low sea levels allowed for the formation of a land bridge between Sumatra and mainland Asia, which enabled migration and genetic exchange between amphibian populations (Voris 2000, Brown & Guttman 2002) . The members of the genus Microhyla Tschudi, 1838 occur at various altitudes and habitats, from tropical rainforests to rice fields, and in terrestrial and sub-fossorial microhabitats (Poyarkov et al. 2014, Gorin et al. 2021) . Discoveries of new Microhyla species have increased over the past decade. Their tiny size and cryp

FAQs

What misidentification is addressed in this study?

The study revises former identifications of “Microhyla sp. aff. fissipes” from Sumatra, correcting them to M. mukhlesuri based on molecular and morphological analyses.

Which Microhyla species are newly recorded from Sumatra?

The paper reports the first site records of M. mantheyi and M. butleri from Sumatra.

How were species identifications supported in this research?

Species limits were supported using both molecular evidence (partial 16S mtDNA sequences) and detailed morphological comparisons, including diagnostic characters.

Aug 27, 2026

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