Orange-thighed frog

The orange-thighed frog (Ranoidea xanthomera) is a species of tree frog native to a small area of tropical northern Queensland, Australia.[1][2] It is a green frog with distinctly orange eyes, and is very similar in appearance to the red-eyed tree frog.

Orange-thighed frog
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Pelodryadidae
Genus: Ranoidea
Species:
R. xanthomera
Binomial name
Ranoidea xanthomera
(Davies, McDonald, and Adams, 1986)
Distribution of the orange-thighed frog
Synonyms
  • Litoria xanthomera Davies, McDonald, and Adams, 1986

Description
Tadpole of the orange-thighed frog

The orange-thighed frog is a medium-sized tree frog, reaching a length of 5.5 cm. It is a slender frog, with a thin body, flat head, and large eyes, which are orange in colour. It has a green dorsal surface, with bright yellow feetand vocal sac, and a yellow band down its flank. The inner surfaces of its legs are yellow, and the outer surfaces are green. It is distinguished, physically, from the red-eyed tree frog by the presence of bright-orange thighs; the red-eyed tree frog has mauve thighs.

Ecology and behaviour

Male orange-thighed frogs congregate around still ponds, and call from low branches, or the edges of the water. The call is a long "aaa-rk", followed by a soft trill. They call after heavy monsoon rains. The males call in a large chorus; amplexus occurs where the frog calls, and the male and female move to the laying site. The eggs are brown, and are in masses of 800 to 1600. The tadpoles are identical in appearance to those of the red-eyed tree frog.

The orange-thighed frog inhabits dense rainforest.[1]

References
Orange-thighed frogs in amplexus.
  1. Jean-Marc Hero; Richard Retallick (2004). "Litoria xanthomera". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2004: e.T41116A10401801. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T41116A10401801.en.
  2. Frost, Darrel R. (2015). "Litoria xanthomera Davies, McDonald, and Adams, 1986". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  • Barker, J.; Grigg, G.C.; Tyler, M.J. (1995). A Field Guide to Australian Frogs. Surrey Beatty & Sons. ISBN 0-949324-61-2.
  • Stratford, Danial (2000). "Litoria xanthomera" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 24, 2005. Retrieved 2006-09-06.


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