title: Cyrts in the city: a new Bent-toed Gecko (Genus Cyrtodactylus) is the only endemic species of vertebrate from Batu Caves, Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia.
abstract: Cyrtodactylus metropolis sp. nov. from Batu Caves massif, Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia is differentiated from all congeners by having a unique suite of morphological and color pattern characteristics. Remarkably, this species has been overlooked despite a plethora of field studies at Batu Caves from 1898 to the present and no specimens had ever been examined until now. As with all other limestone forest-adapted Cyrtodactylus in Peninsular Malaysia, C. metropolis sp. nov. is not a cave-adapted species but is far more common on the exterior surfaces of the Batu Caves limestone massif and its surrounding limestone vegetation. We suggest that researchers devote time exploring the exterior surfaces of limestone massifs as well the interiors of their caves.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, La Sierra University, 4500 Riverwalk Parkway, Riverside, California 92515 USA.; Email: lgrismer@lasierra.edu.
authors.forename: L Lee
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Grismer
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Brigham Young University, 150 East Bulldog Boulevard, Provo, Utah 84602 USA.; Email: pwood@byu.edu.
authors.forename: Perry L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Wood
authors.affiliation: Biodiversity Institute and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas 66045, USA.; Email: chan@ku.edu.
authors.forename: Chan Kin
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Onn
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 USM, Pulau Pinang, Penang, Malaysia. enter for Marine and Coastal Studies, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Minden, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia; Email: shahrulanuar@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Shahrul
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Anuar
authors.affiliation: Centre for Drug Research, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Minden, Pulau Pinang, Penang, Malaysia.; Email: mamuin@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Mohd Abdul
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Muin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D059552:Caves; D017753:Ecosystem; D005260:Female; D008116:Lizards / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000145:classification*; D008296:Malaysia; D008297:Male