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.