DNA barcoding revises a misidentification on mossy frog: new record and distribution extension of Theloderma corticale Boulenger, 1903 (Amphibia: Anura: Rhacophoridae)

As an endangered animal group, mossy frog (genus Theloderma) has attracted the attention of biologists and wildlife conservationists. Clarifying the taxonomic status and distribution of each species in Theloderma is important to determine the conservation status for each species, establish appropriate conservation strategies and probe the speciation process. Recently, we discovered a medium-sized species of mossy frog of the genus Theloderma in April 2015 during municipal surveys of amphibians in Dayao Mountain of Jinxiu. It was collected from the water-filled tree cavities. However, there remains some uncertainty about the species determination of the mossy frog in the Yinshan station of Dayao Mountain in Guangxi Province, China. Previously, the mossy frog in Guangxi Province was recognized as Th. kwangsiense. In order to clarify the species status of the mossy frog obtained from Guangxi, we sequenced 2414 bp of the 12S and 16S genes in the sample collected from the Dayao Mountain. Combining all the sequence in NCBI, genetic analyses from the data suggest that the sample from the Dayao Mountain is Th. corticale rather than Th. kwangsiense. It is most likely that the most previous studies had wrong species identification. And, it is the first time we use DNA barcoding to prove that the species obtained from Guangxi is a new distribution of Th. corticale.作为濒危动物类群，苔藓蛙属（Theloderma）蛙类已受到生物学家与野生动物保护工作者的广泛关注。明确该属各物种种群的分类地位与分布范围，对于确定各物种的保护现状、制定针对性保护策略以及探究物种形成过程均具有重要意义。2015年4月，我们在广西金秀大瑶山开展市域两栖动物调查期间，采集到一只中型苔藓蛙个体，其生境为积水树洞。然而，此前在中国广西大瑶山银山水站记录的苔藓蛙物种鉴定仍存在一定不确定性。既往研究将广西地区的苔藓蛙认定为广西苔藓蛙（Th. kwangsiense）。为明确广西地区采集的苔藓蛙的物种身份，我们对该大瑶山样本的12S与16S基因的2414 bp片段进行了测序。结合美国国家生物技术信息中心（NCBI）数据库中的所有同源序列开展遗传分析后，结果显示该大瑶山样本实为皮质苔藓蛙（Th. corticale），而非广西苔藓蛙。这表明此前多数相关研究存在物种鉴定错误。本研究首次通过DNA条形码（DNA barcoding）技术证实，广西地区采集的该苔藓蛙为皮质苔藓蛙的新分布记录。