Feihyla palpebralis ( Smith, 1924 ), 2006

Biju, S. D., Garg, Sonali, Gokulakrishnan, G., Chandrakasan, Sivaperuman, Thammachoti, Panupong, Ren, Jinlong, Gopika, C., Bisht, Karan, Hamidy, Amir & Shouche, Yogesh, 2020, New insights on the systematics and reproductive behaviour in tree frogs of the genus Feihyla, with description of a new related genus from Asia (Anura, Rhacophoridae), Zootaxa 4878 (1), pp. 1-55 : 24

Feihyla palpebralis ( Smith, 1924)

Vietnamese Jelly-nest Frog

( Figs. 1–5 ; Tables 1–2 )

Original name and description. Philautus palpebralis Smith, 1924 . Smith M. A. 1924. New tree-frogs from Indo- China and the Malay Peninsula. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1924: 225–234. Type. Holotype, author’s number 2589, female (by original designation), presently NHM 1924.1.31.2. Type locality. “Langbian Peaks, alt. 2000 m., S. Annam ”, Vietnam. Current status of specific name. Valid name as Feihyla palpebralis ( Smith, 1924) ( Frost et al. 2006) .

Diagnosis. Medium adult size (male SVL 25–28 mm, female SVL 30 mm); snout pointed in dorsal view; dorsum shagreened to granular; white or light yellow streak extending from below the eye up to the shoulder; dorsum light yellowish-brown or reddish-brown, occasionally with concave bands forming a ‘)(‘-shaped marking or faint lines; presence of a pale white or cream pre- and post-orbital stripe, and continuous or discontinuous dark band between the eyes; limbs with pale cross-bands; first two fingers partially opposed to the others; rudimentary webbing between the outer two fingers; foot webbing moderate, just below the second subarticular tubercle on either side of toe IV ( Fig. 5 ).

Distribution. Feihyla palpebralis is currently known only from the Langbian Peaks area of present-day central Vietnam (Lam Dong Province) and probably northern Vietnam (Tam Dao). Previous studies reported this species from southern China (Yunnan Province, Guangxi Province, and Guizhou Province) (e.g., Fei 1999; Fei et al. 2009, 2010). However, after recent examination of Chinese Feihyla specimens, including the type series of F. fuhua , we found none that could be morphologically assigned to F. palpebralis . The original description of F. fuhua also did not delist the ‘ F. palpebralis ’ record from China. Hence, ‘ F. palpebralis’ from China is considered to be misidentification of F. fuhua ( Fig. 4 ). Further studies are required to understand the geographical ranges of these two species.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Maximum Likelihood tree showing phylogenetic relationships among 124 representative taxa from all recognised genera of the subfamily Rhacophorinae. Relationships are inferred based on 1,937 bp of mitochondrial (12SrRNA, tRNAVAL, 16SrRNA) and nuclear (RHO and RAG1) genes. Numbers above and below the branches indicate Bayesian Posterior Probabilities and RAxML bootstrap support values, respectively.

FIGURE 2. A–B. DNA Barcoding based on mitochondrial 16S rRNA sequences: A. genus Feihyla; B. genus Rohanixalus gen. nov.; C. distribution of the new genus Rohanixalus. Images represent the corresponding species and their broad geographical ranges.

FIGURE 3. Nest structure and egg clutch morphology in the closely relatedAsian genera Chirixalus, Feihyla, and Rohanixalus. A. Foam nest in genus Chirixalus: an amplected pair of C. simus on a freshly laid foam nest; B. bubble nest in genus Rohanixalus: R. vittatus female with a freshly laid egg clutch; C. jelly-nest in genus Feihyla: eggs of Feihyla fuhua; D. schematic illustration of egg clutch morphology in genus Rohanixalus; E. schematic illustration of egg clutch morphology in Feihyla palpebralis group (Feihyla sensu stricto); F. schematic illustration of egg clutch morphology in Feihyla vittiger group; G. schematic illustration of egg clutch morphology in genus Chirixalus.

FIGURE 4. Distribution of genetically confirmed records of all known Feihyla and Rohanixalus members (indicated by circles) and their respective type localities (indicated by triangles). Numbers corresponding to each species are indicated alongside the distribution spots.

FIGURE 5. Members of the Feihyla palpebralis group and their nest structure. A–E. Feihyla fuhua from Mt. Dawei, Yunnan Province, China. A. Dorsolateral view; B. lateral view (arrow indicating a white streak); C. dorsal view; D. freshly laid eggs in a jelly-nest (arrow indicating pigmented pole); E. developing embryos; F–G. Feihyla palpebralis from the type locality, Langbian Plateau, Lam Dong Province, Vietnam: F. dorsolateral view; G. freshly laid eggs in a jelly-nest (arrow indicating pigmented pole); H–I. Feihyla fuhua from Maguan County, Yunnan Province, China: H. dorsolateral view (arrow indicating a white streak); I. freshly laid eggs in a jelly-nest (arrow indicating pigmented pole).