Red-eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas). The species was first described in 1862 by Cope. The Latin name of the species is derived from the Greek words - kallos (beautiful) and dryas (wood nymph).

The red-eyed tree frog is a slender frog. The eyes are large with a blinking membrane, the pupils are vertical. The toes are short, with thick pads that have suction cups, and are more suited for climbing than swimming.

(13 photos total)

1. Habitat: Central and South America (Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Belize, Colombia, Panama). Habitat: tropical rainforests (low-lying and foothill) near water. Inhabits the upper and middle layers of trees. Tree frogs can often be found on the underside of the leaves of epiphytic plants and lianas.

2. Color: basic - green, on the sides and at the base of the paws - blue with a yellow pattern, toes - orange. The belly is white or cream. The eyes are red. Color coloration varies within the range. Some individuals have small white spots on the back. Young tree frogs (in Panama) can change their color: in the daytime they are green, and at night they turn crimson or reddish-brown. Young individuals have yellow eyes, not red ones.

3. Size: females - 7.5 cm, males - 5.6 cm. Life expectancy: 3-5 years.

4. Enemies: reptiles - snakes (for example, parrot snakes Leptophis ahaetulla), lizards and turtles, birds, small mammals (including bats). Cat-eyed snakes (Leptodeira septentrionalis), wasps (Polybia rejecta), monkeys, larvae of Hirtodrosophila batracida flies, etc. hunt for eggs. Fungal infections such as Filamentous ascomycete attack eggs. Tadpoles are hunted by large arthropods, fish and aquatic spiders.

5. Food: the red-eyed tree frog is a carnivore, eats various animals that are placed in the mouth - insects (beetles, flies, moths) and arachnids, lizards and frogs.

6. Behavior: Nocturnal. Red-eyed tree frogs can swim, they have parabolic vision and good sense of touch. During the day, frogs sleep on the underside of green leaves, hiding from predators. During rest, their eyes are closed with a translucent membrane that does not interfere with the frogs' vision. If a predator attacks a red-eyed tree frog, it sharply opens its eyes and their bright red color confuses the attacker. At the moment when the predator froze, the frog runs away. When night falls, tree frogs wake up, yawn and stretch. Despite their bright, frightening color, red-eyed tree frogs are not poisonous, but their skin contains a large amount of active peptides (tachykinin, bradykinin, kaerulein and demorphin).

7. Reproduction: begins with the first rains at the beginning of the wet season. Males, competing with each other, actively sing, trying to attract a female. On dry nights, males sing while sitting high on vegetation, during rain or when bodies of water are full, they descend to the ground or sit at the base of small bushes and trees. When the female descends to the males, several males can jump on her at once. As soon as amplexus occurs, the female, with the male sitting on her back, descends into the water and remains there for about ten minutes in order to absorb water through the skin. After that, the female lays eggs on the leaves (one egg at a time, 30-50 pieces in total), which hang over the water. During the breeding season, the female can mate with several males and lay up to five clutches.

Tree frogs, also known as tree frogs, are the most colorful representatives of the order of amphibians - their colors range from yellow and green to red and blue mixed with black. Such a bright scale is not just a freak of nature, it is a signal for predators, warning of danger. Secreting a poisonous toxin that can paralyze, stun and kill even a large animal, tree frogs have firmly established themselves in the impassable rainforests of Central and South America, where high humidity and a huge biodiversity of insects allow them to survive for more than 200 million years. Appearing on Earth at the same time as dinosaurs, frogs demonstrate extraordinary adaptation to the environment - painted in all colors of the rainbow, they are almost invisible among the lush vegetation and are inedible for most of the fauna.

- Amerindians have long learned to benefit from the poison of dart frogs, using it as a deadly substance to lubricate the tips of their hunting darts. Having pierced the frog with a stick, the Indians first held it over the fire, and then collected the drops of poison that appeared on the skin of the animal into a container, after which they dipped the arrows into a viscous liquid. Hence, another name for poisonous tree frogs arose - dart frogs.

Unusual facts from the life of poisonous poison dart frogs

  • Among the brightly colored 175 species of tree frogs, only three pose a threat to humans, the rest mimic toxicity with their appearance, although they are not poisonous.
  • The size of dangerous tree frogs reaches 2-5 cm, and females are larger than males.
  • Tree frogs climb trees thanks to the rounded tips on their legs, reminiscent of suckers. Making circular movements with their limbs, they move quite easily along the sheer plane of the tree trunk.
  • Poisonous poison dart frogs prefer to live alone, carefully guarding the borders of their territory, and converge only during the mating season after reaching 2 years of age.
  • Tree frogs acquire their bright colors with age, frogs always have a nondescript brown color.
  • The frog's body does not produce poison - it absorbs the toxins of small insects. Poisonous secretions appear on the skin of an amphibian at the time of danger and are caused by a specific "diet", which includes ants, flies, and beetles. Tree frogs raised in captivity, far from their natural habitat and deprived of their usual food, are absolutely harmless.
  • Pointing frogs are both day and nocturnal, climb on the ground and trees, and use a long sticky tongue when hunting.
  • The life cycle of tree frogs is 5-7 years, in captivity - 10-15 years.


Poisonous yellow poison dart frog

Found in the Andean foothills - in the coastal zones of southwestern Colombia, the world's most venomous frog is a terrible leaf climber ( Phyllobates terribilis ) , prefers growing on rocks 300-600 m above sea level. The deciduous bedding under the crowns of trees near the reservoir is a favorite place for the most dangerous vertebrate animal in the world - the yellow-gold tree frog, whose poison can kill 10 people at a time.

The 1.5 cm strawberry tree frog (Andinobates geminisae) from the family of poisonous leaf climbers, first found in 2011, is located in the jungles of Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama. The red-orange palette of the unusual amphibian's body is juxtaposed with bright blue on the hind legs and black marks on the head. After the dreaded golden leaf climber, the red tree frog is the second most toxic in the world.

Okopipi Blue Poison Frog

In 1968, the sky-blue tree frog Dendrobatus azureus was first discovered by scientists in the humid tropical. A vibrant shade of cobalt or azure sapphire with black and white highlights is the classic Okopipi color scheme. The poisonous tree frog got its name from the local aborigines for a long time - unlike scientists, the Amerindians have known it for many centuries. The habitat of the unusual vertebrate is the relict rainforests surrounding the Cipalivini savanna, stretching across the southern regions of Suriname and Brazil. According to scientists, the blue poison dart frog was, as it were, "mothballed" in this area during the last Ice Age, when part of the jungle turned into a grassy plain. Surprisingly, Okopipi does not know how to swim like all amphibians, and it receives the necessary moisture in the moist thickets of the tropical forest.

The distribution area of ​​the red-eyed tree frog - Agalychnis callidryas, is quite extensive: from Northern Colombia, through the entire central part of America, to the southern tip of Mexico. This species of amphibians lives mainly in the lowlands of Costa Rica and Panama. The color of the "big-eyed" dart frog is the most intense in the family of tailless vertebrates - neon spots of blue and orange are scattered on a bright green background. But especially remarkable are the eyes of this amphibian - scarlet, with a vertical narrow pupil, they help a harmless little frog to scare away predators.

In the east of the continent, there is another species of red-eyed frog - Litoria chloris - the owner of a rich light green color with yellow splashes. Both types of tree frogs are not poisonous despite their expressive "outfit" and piercing eyes.

Interesting to know! Many animals have a spectacular color - a warning color developed in the process of evolution to protect against predators and indicating the toxicity of its owner. As a rule, this is a combination of contrasting colors: black and yellow, red and blue or others, striped or teardrop-shaped pattern - even those predators that are color-blind by nature distinguish such a color. In addition to the catchy color scheme, miniature animals have large eyes, incommensurate with the dimensions of the body, which in the dark creates the illusion of a large organism. This survival trait is called aposematism.

Medicinal uses of tree frog venom

Scientists' research on the pharmacological use of frog toxins began in 1974, when the US National Institutes of Health first experimented with Dendrobatid and Epidatidine, the main components of tree tree frog venom. It turned out that in its analgesic properties, one substance is 200 times superior to morphine, and the other is 120 times superior to nicotine. In the mid-90s, a scientist at Abbott Labs. managed to create a synthetic version of epidatidine - AVT-594, which significantly reduces pain, but does not euthanize like opiates. A research team from the American Museum of Natural History also analyzed 300 alkaloids in tree frog venom and determined that some of them are effective for neuralgia and muscle dysfunction.

  • The largest frog in the world is a goliath (Conraua goliath) from West Africa, its body length (excluding legs) is about 32-38 cm, weight is almost 3.5 kg. The giant amphibian lives in Cameroon and Guinea, on the sandy shores of the African rivers Sanaga and Benito.
  • The smallest frog in the world is the tree toad from Cuba, it grows 1.3 cm in length.
  • In total, there are about 6 thousand species of frogs in the world, but every year scientists find more and more new species.
  • A toad is the same frog, only its skin is dry, unlike frogs, and covered with warts, and its hind legs are shorter.
  • The frog sees perfectly at night and is sensitive to even the slightest movement, in addition, the location and shape of the eyes allows it to perfectly survey the terrain, not only in front and on the sides of itself, but also partially behind.
  • Thanks to their long hind legs, frogs can jump up to 20 times their body length. The Costa Rican tree tree frog has webbing between the toes of its hind and front paws - this kind of aerodynamic device helps it float in the air when it jumps from one branch to another.
  • Like all amphibians, frogs are cold-blooded - their body temperature changes in direct proportion to the parameters of the environment. When the air temperature drops to a critical level, they burrow underground and remain in suspended animation until spring. Even if 65% of the tree frog's body is frozen, it will survive by increasing the concentration of glucose in vital organs. Another example of vitality is demonstrated by the Australian frog that lives in deserts - it can survive without water for about 7 years.


New species of frogs and toads found around the world

Recently, a new species of golden tree frog was discovered in the highlands of western Panama. Scientists managed to spot an amphibian in dense foliage due to an unusual loud croaking, unlike any previously studied. When zoologists caught the animal, yellow coloring pigment began to appear on its legs. There was a fear that the secretions were poisonous, but after a series of tests, it turned out that the bright yellow mucus did not contain any toxins. A strange feature of the frog helped the scientific group come up with a scientific name for it - Diasporus citrinobapheus, which conveys the essence of its behavior in Latin. Another new species of poisonous frogs - Andinobates geminisae, scientists have found in Panama (Doroso, Colon province), in the upper reaches of the Rio Canyo. According to experts, the neon-orange frog is on the verge of extinction, since its habitat is extremely small.

On the island of Sulawesi near the Philippine archipelago, a scientific group discovered the existence of a large number of clawed frogs - 13 species, 9 of which were hitherto unknown to science. Differences are observed in the size of the body of amphibians, the size and number of spurs on the hind legs. Due to the fact that this species is the only one on the island, nothing prevents it from breeding and reproducing, unlike its relatives in the Philippines, where clawed tree frogs compete with another species - amphibians of the Platymantis family. The rapid growth in the number of island tailless clearly demonstrates the correctness of Charles Darwin's concept of adaptive distribution, described on the example of finches from the Galapagos archipelago.

Biodiversity of frogs on Earth

  • Vietnam. About 150 species of amphibian animals are widespread here; in 2003, 8 new species of frogs were found on the territory of the country.
  • Venezuela. The exotic state is sometimes called the "lost world" - many of the hard-to-reach mesas are distinguished by endemic flora and fauna. In 1995, a group of scientists undertook a helicopter expedition to the Sierra Yavi, Guanay and Yutai Mountains, where 3 species of frogs unknown to science were found.
  • Tanzania. A new species of tree tree frog, Leptopelis barbouri, has been discovered in the Ujungwa mountains.
  • Papua New Guinea. Over the past decade, 50 unexplored species of tailless amphibians have been discovered here.
  • Northeastern regions of the United States. The habitat of the rare spider-like toad.
  • Madagascar. The island is home to 200 species of frogs, of which 99% are endemic - unique, nowhere else found species. The last find of scientists - a narrow-mouthed toad, was discovered through the study of the soil and deciduous cover of the jungle, during which it was possible to identify the excrement of an amphibian.
  • Colombia. The most outstanding discovery by scientists in the region is the tree frog Colostethus atopoglossus, found only on the eastern slopes of the Andes, in El Boquerón.

Argentina, Bolivia, Guyana, Tanzania and many more countries with tropical climates and rugged landscapes are regions where scientists are constantly finding new subspecies of animals, including tailless amphibians - frogs. The owners of miniature sizes, arboreal representatives of the order of amphibians are not only the smallest, but also the most dangerous animals in the world - modern zoologists are increasingly convinced of this.

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  • Order: Anura Rafinesque, 1815 = Tailless amphibians (amphibians)
  • Family: Hylidae Gray, 1825 = Tree frogs, tree frogs, arboreal trees
  • Genus: Agalychnis Cope, 1864 = Bright-eyed tree frogs

    • Species: Agalychnis callidryas = Red-eyed tree frog

    (Red-eyed tree frog, Beautiful tree nymph).

    The red-eyed tree frog was described in 1862 by Cope. And its Latin specific name comes from the Greek words - kallos (beautiful) and dryas (wood nymph).

    The red-eyed tree frog has a habitat in Central and South America. It is noted in countries such as Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Belize, Colombia, Panama.

    Their main habitats are low-lying and foothill tropical rain forests, usually located nearby or on the banks of water bodies. The red-eyed tree frog inhabits the upper and middle tiers of trees. Here tree frogs settle on the leaves of epiphytic plants and lianas.

    The red-eyed tree frog has a slender body covered with smooth skin. The main color of the body is green, and on the sides of the body and at the base of the paws is blue with a yellow pattern, the fingers are orange. The abdomen is white or cream. Color coloration varies within the range. Some individuals have small white spots on the back.

    It was noted that in Panama, young tree frogs can change their color: in the daytime they are green, and at night they turn crimson or red-brown. The eyes of young individuals are not red, but yellow.

    The toes are short, with suckers on thick pads. Therefore, the fingers of the red-eyed tree frog are adapted more for climbing than for swimming. The head is rounded with large red eyes and a vertical pupil. The eyes have a blinking membrane that protects the eye from foreign objects.

    In the red-eyed tree frog, the females are somewhat larger than the males: they reach 7.5 cm, while the males are 5.6 cm.

    The red-eyed tree frog is nocturnal. During the day, frogs sleep on the underside of green leaves, thus hiding from various predators.

    During rest, their eyes are closed with a translucent membrane that does not interfere with the frogs' vision. If a predator attacks a red-eyed tree frog, it sharply opens its eyes and their bright red color confuses the attacker. At the moment when the predator froze, the frog runs away.

    The main enemies of the red-eyed tree frog are snakes, in particular parrot snakes (Leptophis ahaetulla), as well as some tree lizards, birds, small mammals (including bats). Despite this, the average life expectancy is 3-5 years.

    Tadpoles are hunted by large arthropods (for example, water spiders), fish and turtles. The eggs of the red-eyed tree frog are eagerly eaten by cat-eyed snakes (Leptodeira septentrionalis), wasps (Polybia rejecta), monkeys, larvae of flies Hirtodrosophila batracida, etc. In addition, eggs are often affected by fungal infections (Filamentous ascomycete, etc.).

    The red-eyed tree frog, like its other fellow tribesmen, is a carnivore. The basis of its diet is various animals: from insects - various beetles, dipterans (all kinds of flies and mosquitoes), lepidoptera and arachnids, to small lizards and frogs, i.e. they eat whatever they can catch and whatever fits in their mouths.

    Red-eyed tree frogs can swim, they have parabolic vision and good sense of touch. When night falls, tree frogs wake up, yawn and stretch.

    Despite their bright, frightening coloration, red-eyed tree frogs are not poisonous, although their skin contains a large amount of active peptides (tachykinin, bradykinin, kaerulein and demorphin).

    With the arrival of the wet season, when the rains begin, the red-eyed tree frogs begin to reproduce. The peak of reproduction within the range is in May-November.

    Adult males have special resonator sacs that greatly amplify the sounds they make. Males, competing with each other, actively sing, trying to attract the female. On dry, rainless nights, males sing, climbing high on the plants closest to the reservoir, and during rain or when the reservoirs are filled to the brim with rainwater, red-eyed frogs descend to the ground or sit at the base of small bushes and trees and sing.

    When a female attracted by the singing of males approaches them, then several suitors can immediately jump on her. As soon as amplexus occurs, the female, with the male sitting on her back, descends into the water and remains there for about ten minutes in order to absorb water through the skin. After that, the female begins to lay eggs one at a time, placing them on the leaves hanging over the water. In total, the female lays up to 30-50 green eggs. Their diameter immediately after oviposition is about 3.7 mm, and before the larvae emerge it reaches 5.2 mm. Each egg is covered on the outside with a gelatinous, sufficiently elastic shell, which plays a protective role, making them unattractive to many would-be predators.

    After completing the egg-laying process, the female returns to the water to restore the disturbed water balance of the body. In total, during the breeding season, the female can mate with several males and lay up to five clutches of eggs.

    The incubation of eggs continues, depending on the temperature, for 6-10 days. In some cases, when a predator (for example, an attack of a snake or a wasp) or flooding threatens the tadpoles that have already almost completed their development in the clutch, the tadpoles emerge from their eggs ahead of time - 4-5 days. Usually, tadpoles hatch in one clutch almost simultaneously, which allows the liquid released from the eggs to wash them off the leaf into the reservoir. Sometimes tadpoles fall to the ground. In this case, they can live without water for up to 20 hours. If it rains during this time, it can wash the tadpoles into a nearby body of water.

    The red-eyed tree frog larvae have external gills, while the hatched tadpoles breathe through the internal gills and skin.

    The dorsal side of the red-eyed tree frog tadpoles is olive-gray in color, and their length reaches 4.8 mm. Complete metamorphosis of tadpoles ends in 75-80 days.

    At present, the number of populations of the red-eyed tree frog is gradually decreasing due to the vigorous activity of humans, destroying their natural habitats.

    The red-eyed tree frog (red-eyed tree frog) is considered one of the most popular representatives of the frog world, which exotic lovers start at home. Tree frog has a light green shade of body, on the sides of which there are stripes of blue, and there are also white blotches. However, it is common for a frog to change its shade to match the tone of the surrounding nature. The most prominent characteristic of an amphibian is its bright red eyes. It is thanks to them that it acquired its name.

    Subject to all the necessary nuances of keeping frogs, the owners do not have any difficulties. Such pets show their activity in the evening. Due to its ability to change color, watching frogs will be interesting for all residents of the house. Depending on the background, the red-eyed tree frog, the photo of which is presented below, can change its color from green to dark brown at the moment when they hunt for their prey.

    The red-eyed tree frog is great for all owners, whether it's an experienced breeder or a novice breeder. The first time they got such a pet was in the late 80s. They brought an exotic terrarium dweller from Honduras.

    Appearance

    The red-eyed tree tree frog is related to the average representatives of frogs, which vary in size from 2.5 to 5 cm. The area of ​​origin is considered to be tropical forests located in the south of Mexico, as well as Central America. They are very active in the dark. Tree frogs live only in trees, while in the daytime they hide in dense vegetation.

    Adult tree frogs generally range in size from 2.5 to 4 cm in length. The sex of the frog can be easily determined by the size of the individual, since the female has a great length and weight.

    Life expectancy in their natural habitat is not yet thoroughly known, however, in captivity, they are quite hardy pets. The average life span of a red-eyed tree frog in a terrarium is 10 years, but provided all the necessary nuances are provided, such pets can delight their owners a little longer.

    Features of the terrarium

    The red-eyed tree frog, the maintenance of which does not require special conditions, will perfectly settle down in an ordinary glass terrarium intended for reptiles. Special terrariums for frogs can be purchased at pet stores, while they are very easy to clean, have excellent thermal conductivity, and maintain humidity at the desired level.

    A terrarium with a volume of 75 liters is best for an adult. Such housing can accommodate 3 to 4 red-eyed tree frogs. In the event that you use a smaller volume of the terrarium, pets can get injured when they hit the glass while jumping.

    Young animals can be placed in a smaller area, but they grow up rather quickly, and, therefore, large housing will be needed very soon.

    Lighting and temperature control

    Red-eyed tree frogs should be kept at warm temperatures throughout the day. Where the terrarium is located, the temperature should be no more than + 28 C, it is best if it will be in the range from + 25 to + 28 C, and in the dark, the value should drop to + 15 C, however, given that tree frogs it is at night that they show great activity, it is best to maintain a warmer night temperature regime.

    In the event that you live in warm countries, in the summer period you can do without additional means of heating the terrarium. However, if temperatures are lower than recommended for tree frogs, the best solution is to use additional heat sources.

    Heat heaters, incandescent lamps with a power of no more than 60 W are quite suitable, which will provide the terrarium with softer heat and will not cause drying out. Red lamps will also be a good source, which will keep the red-eyed tree frogs warm for 24 hours.

    Red-eyed tree frogs do not need special lighting at home, but a weak ultraviolet lamp will still be useful for pets. Lamps of this type will provide owners with a better view of their exotic occupants, as well as provide frogs and vegetation with the necessary ultraviolet rays.

    Terrarium decoration and flooring

    Terrarium decking should not only be easy to clean, but also mold and mildew resistant. He must also maintain the required level of humidity in the tree frog's dwelling. Coconut substrates such as CocoSoft, EcoEarth and others, in the form of coconut shavings or bricks, are best suited. As a flooring, you can use sphagnum moss and orchid bark, which are sold in special pet stores.

    Since red-eyed tree frogs are arboreal, the terrarium must be equipped in such a way that they can climb on various devices. Both living and artificial decorations, vegetation, branches and tree bark should be used. All this will bring the red-eyed frogs as close as possible to their natural habitat. About others, be sure to check it out, maybe it will be interesting for you!

    Preference should be given to vegetation with large and fairly wide leaves, which are most similar to the plants that surround frogs in their natural environment, and also provide them with shelter and a place to sleep. In the event that living vegetation is used, the temperature climate and lighting in the terrarium must be taken into account, since without enough light, the plant may die.

    Humidity

    In the terrarium of a red-eyed tree frog, there must be a shallow dish in which fresh water will always be present. Frogs swim quite rarely, but a large volume of a container with water is necessary to maintain the desired humidity level, and in the event that the temperature is very high and the frog will need to cool down.

    In a room with a terrarium, it is necessary to maintain a sufficiently high level of humidity, but, nevertheless, dampness should not be allowed. Basically, in order to provide the necessary humidity, two sprays of water are enough throughout the day. Water should be sprayed onto decorations or terrarium flooring. It is quite possible to spray water manually or use automatic devices that will provide the required level of humidity.

    Feeding features

    Red-eyed tree frogs prefer insects in their diet, so at home they are quite suitable:

    • grasshoppers,
    • crickets,
    • cockroaches,
    • and other food animals.

    Sometimes frogs prefer worms, but in most cases they prefer grasshoppers. You can purchase a special food for frogs living in a terrarium, which looks like canned grasshoppers, previously dried in a special way. However, if there is such an opportunity, feeding can be carried out with live food.

    All foods included in the frog's diet must be sprinkled with vitamin D3, as well as calcium. Such supplements are of the greatest importance for young individuals during their maturational period. They should use such a feeding during each feeding, but adult tree frogs may take it much less often.

    You should also introduce multivitamins, which the reptiles need one to two times a week. You should always carefully read the instructions for vitamins and supplements to avoid overdose.

    Taming

    The red-eyed tree frog, like its closest relatives, in most cases does not tolerate a large amount of time with a person. Frogs are harmless and can be touched for short periods of time, but keep in mind that they are not tame pets. You should be aware that frogs have sensitive skin, and can easily absorb toxins emanating from our hands, so the animal will experience severe stress.

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    The red-eyed tree frog lives in South and Central America: Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Colombia, Nicaragua, Panama and Colombia.

    The species was described by Cope in 1862. The Latin name for the red-eyed tree frog is translated as "beautiful tree nymph."

    Description of the red-eyed tree frog

    Females are larger than males: the body length of females reaches 7.5 centimeters, and males - no more than 5.6 centimeters.

    The red-eyed tree frog has a slender build. The body is covered with smooth skin. The main color of the body is green, on the sides of the body and at the base of the legs there is a blue color with a yellow pattern. The belly is cream or white, and the fingers are orange. The coloration of red-eyed tree frogs may vary within the range. Certain individuals have small white spots in the back of the body.

    The fingers are short, with pads on their tips, so red-eyed tree frogs climb more often than swim. The head is rounded, the eyes are large red with vertical pupils. The eyes are protected by a blinking membrane that prevents dust from entering.

    It is noteworthy that in Panama, young individuals are able to change color: during the day their bodies are green, and at night they turn red-brown or crimson. The eyes of the young are not red, but yellow.


    The red-eyed tree frog is also called "tree nymph".

    The lifestyle of red-eyed tree frogs

    The main habitats of these tree frogs are foothill and low-lying tropical forests, which most often grow on the shores of water bodies. These tree frogs live in the middle or upper tier of the forest, and settle there on vines and plant leaves.

    Tree frogs are nocturnal, and in the daytime they sleep on the lower part of the leaves, hiding from predators. When the tree frog is resting, its eyes are covered by a transparent membrane, while the frog can see. If she is in danger, she instantly opens her eyes and confuses the predator with her bright red color. These seconds are enough for the frog to instantly hide.

    The main enemies of red-eyed tree frogs are snakes (mainly parrot snakes), small mammals, birds and tree lizards. The average life span of a red-eyed tree frog is 3-5 years.


    The bright color of the red-eyed tree frog scares away predators.

    Tadpoles are eaten by fish, turtles and various arthropods. And caviar is an object of food for wasps, cat-eyed snakes, fly larvae, monkeys and other living organisms. In addition, caviar dies from the effects of a fungal infection.

    Red-eyed tree frogs, like other frogs, are carnivores. They feed on a variety of beetles, mosquitoes, flies, spiders, lepidoptera, frogs and small lizards, that is, they eat any prey that fits in their mouth.

    Red-eyed tree frogs are able to swim, they have a good sense of touch and have parabolic vision. At night, the tree frog wakes up, stretches and yawns.

    Although red-eyed tree frogs have a frightening bright color, they are non-toxic, but their skin contains a large number of different peptides: kaerulein, tachykinin and bradykinin.


    In fact, red-eyed tree frogs are non-venomous frogs.

    Reproduction of red-eyed tree frogs

    In the wet season, with the arrival of rains, tree frogs start breeding. The peak of activity falls in May-November. Sexually mature males have resonator sacs, due to which they can make loud sounds.

    Hear the voice of a red-eyed tree frog

    Competing with each other, males sing, thereby attracting a female. On dry nights, they make sounds from the plants, and in the rain, they sing on the ground, sitting at the base of the bushes.


    When the female approaches the male, whose singing attracted her, several males attack her at the same time. Then the female with one male sitting on her back, plunges into the water, and stays in the water for about 10 minutes, absorbing the water through the skin. One female lays 30-50 eggs. The eggs are green in color, with a diameter of 3.7 millimeters, and by the time the larvae emerge, they increase in diameter to 5.2 millimeters. Outside, the eggs are covered with an elastic gelatinous membrane that performs a protective function, since thanks to it the eggs become inconspicuous.

    When the eggs are laid, the female returns to the water, where she rehydrates. In one season, the female manages to mate with several partners and make about 5 clutches.

    The incubation process takes 6-10 days. If the tadpoles are in danger, for example, a wasp attacked the clutch, or the pond is flooded, then they come out several days ahead of schedule. Most often, tadpoles hatch from one clutch at the same time, and the liquid released from the eggs washes them all into the water.