First record of Scincella fansipanensis Okabe, Motokawa, Koizumi, Nguyen, Nguyen & Bui, 2024 (Squamata, Scincidae) from China

Morphologically, the Chinese specimens are consistent with the type series, but differ slightly in possessing a higher number of ventral scales (including gulars) and relatively shorter fore-limbs. Phylogenetic analyses, based on <i>CO1</i> sequences, place the Chinese specimens within the <i>S.fansipanensis</i> clade; however, uncorrected <i>p</i>-distances of 6.5-7.3% between the Chinese and Vietnamese populations suggest moderate genetic divergence. This level of differentiation may reflect historical isolation by the Red River Basin's complex topography and the low dispersal ability of <i>Scincella</i> species. This record raises the number of the genus <i>Scincella</i> species known from China to 15.