Squirrel Tree Frog
Hyla squirella
Summary 5
The squirrel tree frog (Hyla squirella) is a small species of tree frog found in the southeastern United States, from Texas to Virginia. Populations in urbanized areas of southeastern Virginia had become extirpated.
Physical Description 6
This species can come in a variety of colors (yellow, brown, green, etc.) and can either be plain or spotted. The size of the squirrel tree frog ranges from 1 to 1.5 inches. It may have a light stripe running from under its eye along its jaw. It may also have a dark mark between its eyes and it may have dark spots on its body. It has large toe pads that help it cling to trees.
Reproduction 6
The squirrel treefrog breeds from March to October. Adults migrate from upland sites to breeding pools during rains. The female lays up to 1,000 eggs in a breeding pond of shallow, standing water with lots of vegetation. It takes about six weeks for the tadpoles to transform into froglets. Tadpoles are suspension feeders that eat organic and inorganic food particles they scrape from rock, plant, and log substrates.
Habitat 6
The Squirrel tree frog can be found in the Southeastern Coastal Plain. The squirrel treefrog lives in areas with plenty of moisture, shade and insects. It can be found in in gardens, and on trees, shrubs and vines.
http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/squirreltreefrog.htm
https://amphibiaweb.org/cgi/amphib_query?where-genus=Hyla&where-species=squirella
Behavior 7
Within its range this species is ubiquitous and may appear suddenly in and around houses. Its requirements include moisture, food and a hiding place. This species has even been described as "dropping from the sky" as it falls from a perch while in pursuit of insect prey. The chief food for this species is small insects. Breeding occurs is conjunction with summer storms with eggs laid on the bottoms of open pools and ponds. Males have a nasal, ducklike breeding call. This species gets its name from its "rain call" which is described as a squirrel-like, scolding rasp. Its diets is made up primarily of small insects.
Fontes e Créditos
- (c) Andrew Hoffman, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-NC-ND), https://www.flickr.com/photos/71701055@N00/16886109866/
- (c) Judy Gallagher, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY), https://www.flickr.com/photos/52450054@N04/8262963778/
- (c) p.sparrow, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-NC-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/psparrow/7976501684/
- (c) Andrew Hoffman, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-NC-ND), https://www.flickr.com/photos/71701055@N00/16291994743/
- Adaptado por TaelorJones de uma obra de (c) Wikipedia, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyla_squirella
- (c) TaelorJones, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-SA)
- (c) colbyb, alguns direitos reservados (CC BY-SA)
