Pacific Tree Frog An Animal Report By Kiet Quach

* bThe Pacific Tree Frogs are the smallest but loudest amphibians of the Pacific Northwest. This frog can grow as only 10 cm (2 inches) long snout to vent. This frog can be recognized by its black stripes through the eyes to the shoulder. Also the belly of it is light-colored and the v or y shape between it’s eyes. The males are smaller than the females.

* b Pacific Tree Frogs live from southern B.C. south to California and east to Montana and Nevada. They have also been introduced to the Queen Charlotte Islands in B.C. Tree frogs usually are usually found in wetlands, trees, freshwater, shrubs and bushes close to water.

* bNewly hatched tadpoles are about 1 cm ( 0.5 inch) long and grow quickly on a diet of algae and other pond plants. Their tiny mouths are located on the bottom of their heads and help them to scrape up bits of plant material. Tadpoles eat a huge amount of food and produce much waste which becomes fertilizer for the pond plants they feed on. Adult frogs feed on flying and crawling insects and other invertebrates. Like most frogs, they will stuff creatures almost as long as themselves in their mouths.

* b The Pacific Tree Frog is not an endangered specie of frogs. The Pacific Tree Frog adapts to camouflaging. Its color varies from almost a bronze brown to a light lime green. Individuals can change color in green and brown tones in a few minutes. This color change is related to the temperature and amount of moisture in the air, not the background color as in most other amphibians and reptiles. This color change gives it the protection of camouflage as it hops and crawls about on low leaves, branches and on the ground in open forests and forest edges looking for flying and crawling insects to eat. This is an adaptable species who can live in coastal rainforests as well as ponds near treed areas of the interior dry belt.

* b T he Pacific Tree Frog moves mostly on trees. It also moves on ground and water as most frogs do. Moving on trees are by the sticky pads on it’s toes. Also moving on trees are useful for camouflaging.

* b As a tadpole the Pacific Tree Frog digests only plants. During the first transformation it begins to eat small insects. On the final transformation the frog begins to start eating big insects like flies, mosquitoes, and tiny gnats.

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* b After mating the female lays eggs in temporary ponds where predators don’t live or lay eggs there. Eggs are usually laid in March to May. Fertilization of eggs is external and a clear jelly egg mass the size of a ping pong ball is laid attached to floating sticks and plants. Eggs take about 3 to 4 weeks to hatch, depending on water temperature. The colder the water is, the longer they take to hatch.

* b The Pacific Tree Frog is a very small and interesting amphibians. It is also very loud frog that could yell and be heard a mile away. It is very protective and territorial of its pond. It takes a few minutes for the frog to camouflage and change different colors.

d b Resources : b Pictures: eformed/1768.jpg eformed/1768.jpg eformed/1768.jpg