Feihyla kajau Li et al. 2013

Feihyla kajau (Dring, 1983)

White-eared Jelly-nest Frog

(Figs. 1–2, 4, 6; Tables 1–2)

Original name and description. Rhacophorus kajau Dring, 1983. Dring J. C. M. 1983. Some new frogs from Sarawak. Amphibia-Reptilia, 4: 103–115. Type. Holotype, BMNH 1978.1757, by original designation. Type locality. “Gunung Mulu, Fourth Division, Sarawak ”, Malaysia. Current status of specific name. Valid name as Feihyla kajau (Dring, 1983) (Li et al. 2013).

Diagnosis. Small-sized adults (male SVL 18–20 mm) with a slender body; snout rounded to truncate in dorsal view, and truncate in lateral view; dorsal skin shagreened to sparsely granular with scattered spinules; dorsal colouration uniformly light green with minute white or yellowish speckles; upper arm, loreal, canthal and tympanic regions, lateral surfaces of abdomen, and anterior and posterior parts of thigh, non-pigmented (flesh coloured); presence of a narrow white streak starting from the snout tip and extending along the lateral surfaces up to the groin, that separates the dorsal and lateral body colouration; the first two fingers opposed to the others; foot webbing moderate, not beyond the second tubercle on either side of toe IV; narrow crenulate dermal ridges present along the outer edges of hand, forearm, foot, tarsus, and transversely below the vent. In life, the skin over the belly is translucent making the internal organs, including mature ova, visible (Dring 1983).

Genetic divergence. Phylogenetically, F. kajau is closely related to members of the Feihyla vittiger group (Fig. 1). For the 16S mitochondrial gene, it differs by average uncorrected genetic distances of: 10.7–11.1% from F. inexpectata and 12.6–12.8% from F. vittiger. For interspecific genetic distances with other congeners, see Table 2.

Distribution. Feihyla kajau is currently known only from the Borneo island: Brunei; Sabah to Sarawak of Malaysia; and Kalimantan of Indonesia.