Northern Dwarf Tree Frog

Litoria bicolor (Gray 1842)

Species Info Card | Updated 1 decade ago

A small (up to 3 cm) and slender green tree frog. It has a flattened triangular head, an elongate body and moderately long limbs. The fingers are short with small terminal discs, and the toes are fully webbed. Juveniles are brown but more green appears as they grow larger. There are brown stripes on either side of the head and body, bordered below by a white stripe. There is orange in the groin and thighs.

Breeding Biology

Breeds in flooded marshes and grasslands where males call in a vertical position from high perches in vegetation near the water. Females lay several hundred eggs in clumps of 10-20 around submerged vegetation. Tadpoles have a high crested tail, and are a pale brown with dark stripes on the tail. Towards the end of the larval period, when tadpoles achieve a maximum size of about 5 cm, the white stripe below the eye becomes visible.

Habitat

Abundant in marshes and swamps with dense vegetation. Can be common around human habitation as well.

Etymology

The name bicolor means 'two colours' and refers to the sharp contrast between the green back and white belly.

General

A common frog in the northern tropics, but can be difficult to locate during the day owing to its camouflage.

Kimberley region. Also northern Northern Territory and Queensland, and in southern New Guinea.

A high-pitched 'reeek...pip pip, reeek...pip pip'.