tree frog

tree frog
any of various arboreal frogs, esp. of the family Hylidae, usually having adhesive disks at the tip of each toe.
[1730-40]

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Any of some 550 species (family Hylidae) of mostly arboreal frogs, found worldwide but primarily in the New World.

Most species are small, slender, and long-legged and have suckerlike adhesive disks on the finger and toe tips. Some do not climb well and live in water, on land, or in a burrow. Most species lay eggs in water. Young marsupial frogs (genus Gastrotheca), of South America, develop in a brood pouch on the female's back.

European green tree frogs (Hyla arborea).

Jane Burton/Bruce Coleman Ltd.

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also spelled  treefrog,  also called  tree toad 
 any typically arboreal frog belonging to one of several families of the order Anura. Of these, the hylid, or “true,” tree frogs from the family Hylidae are the most numerous. Hylids are usually slender, less than 10 cm (4 inches) in length, and long-legged, and they possess enlarged adhesive disks on the tips of the fingers and toes that aid in climbing. They often possess jewel-like eyes that glint with flecks of gold or copper. Their lustrous skin varies widely in colour and commonly has a metallic sheen.

 Most species deposit their eggs in water, although it is also common for eggs to be laid on vegetation overhanging water (see video—>). After hatching, the tadpoles drop through the air into pools or streams below. Some, such as the blacksmith frog (Hyla faber), build mud nests at the water's edge; others lay their eggs in the water that collects between the leaves of plants. (See rainforest ecosystem sidebar, “Life in a Bromeliad Pool.”) In the marsupial frogs (Gastrotheca) of South America, the young hatch and develop from eggs into tadpoles inside a brood pouch that forms on the back of the female. Some hylids do not climb well and live in the water, on land, or in burrows.

 In the family Hylidae there are more than 700 species belonging to 40 or so genera. They are found primarily in the New World tropics but are also present in Europe, Australia, and across much of nontropical Asia. The genus Hyla includes hundreds of species; better-known representatives include the barking tree frog (H. gratiosa), the European green tree frog (H. arborea), whose range extends across Asia and into Japan, the gray tree frog (H. versicolor), the green frog (H. cinerea), and the Pacific tree frog (H. regilla). The smallest is the little grass frog (Pseudacris, or Limnoaedus, ocularis), which does not exceed 1.75 cm (0.69 inch) in length and is found in cypress swamps in the United States from Virginia to Florida and Alabama. Nonhylid tree frogs include members of the families Centrolenidae (the transparent “glass frogs,” see video), Hyperoliidae, Rhacophoridae (an Old World family similar to the hylids), and Microhylidae.
 

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Tree frog — Tree Tree (tr[=e]), n. [OE. tree, tre, treo, AS. tre[ o], tre[ o]w, tree, wood; akin to OFries. tr[=e], OS. treo, trio, Icel. tr[=e], Dan. tr[ae], Sw. tr[ a], tr[ a]d, Goth. triu, Russ. drevo, W. derw an oak, Ir. darag, darog, Gr. dry^s a tree,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • tree frog — Tree Tree (tr[=e]), n. [OE. tree, tre, treo, AS. tre[ o], tre[ o]w, tree, wood; akin to OFries. tr[=e], OS. treo, trio, Icel. tr[=e], Dan. tr[ae], Sw. tr[ a], tr[ a]d, Goth. triu, Russ. drevo, W. derw an oak, Ir. darag, darog, Gr. dry^s a tree,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • tree frog — tree′ frog n. ram any frog, esp. of the family Hylidae, that climbs into trees, usu. with the aid of disks at the toes • Etymology: 1730–40 …   From formal English to slang

  • tree frog — n. any of several families of frogs (esp. Hylidae) that live in trees, which they climb with the aid of adhesive discs on the toes: many are called tree toads …   English World dictionary

  • tree frog — noun 1. arboreal amphibians usually having adhesive disks at the tip of each toe; of southeast Asia and Australia and America • Syn: ↑tree toad, ↑tree frog • Hypernyms: ↑frog, ↑toad, ↑toad frog, ↑anuran, ↑batrachian, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • tree-frog — noun 1. arboreal amphibians usually having adhesive disks at the tip of each toe; of southeast Asia and Australia and America • Syn: ↑tree toad, ↑tree frog • Hypernyms: ↑frog, ↑toad, ↑toad frog, ↑anuran, ↑batrachian, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • Tree frog — A tree frog or tree toad is any frog that spends a major portion of its lifespan in an arboreal state. [http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=tree%20frog] [http://animals.howstuffworks.com/amphibians/tree frog info.htm] Two lineages of frogs… …   Wikipedia

  • tree frog — /ˈtri frɒg/ (say tree frog) noun any of the arboreal frogs of various families, characterised usually by toes with adhesive discs …  

  • tree frog — frog that lives in trees …   English contemporary dictionary

  • tree frog — noun Tree frogs are frogs of the family Hylidae. They are of small size and more elegant in form than the true frogs (family Ranidae). Many tree frogs have bright coloration …   Wiktionary

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