Asian Treefrogs: Rhacophoridae

Physical characteristics: The painted Indonesian treefrog, also known as Peter's treefrog or the cinnamon treefrog, may be bright orange, red, orange brown, or brown in color and looks as if it has been painted with tiny white dots. This dotted pattern gives the frog another of its common names, the spotted treefrog. Sometimes the dots form a broken line from the snout over the eye and to the back. The frog has a rough back with small and pointy bumps on its upper surface. On its underside, the frog is a paler orange or orange brown color. The head is flat like the body and narrows to a dull point at the end of its fairly long snout. It has two very large eyes, one on each side of the head. The eyes are white on top and brown on the bottom.

This species is a slender frog with very long and thin hind legs that fold neatly against its flattened body when it is sitting still. Its The painted Indonesian treefrog, also known as Peter's treefrog or the cinnamon treefrog, may be bright orange, red, orange brown, or brown in color and looks as if it has been painted with tiny white dots. (Illustration by Brian Cressman. Reproduced by permission.) front legs are also quite thin, and the frog likewise holds them tucked close to its body. On the front feet, the toes may be unwebbed or may have a small amount of webbing between them. The toes of the rear feet have more webbing. Females are larger than males. Females reach 1.46 to 1.54 inches (3.7 to 3.9 centimeters) from the tip of the snout to the end of the rump, while males grow to 1.12 to 1.5 inches (3.0 to 3.7 centimeters) long.

Geographic range: It lives in southeastern Asia, including Sumatra and Borneo in Indonesia, Palawan Island of the Philippines, Malaya, Sumatra, Singapore, and the southern edge of Taiwan.

Habitat: Adults live in moist forests either in lowlands or high in mountains up to 5,400 feet (1,650 meters) above sea level. For the frogs to survive, the forests must not be disturbed by humans. Tadpoles develop in puddles of water inside tree holes.

Diet: Although they do not know for sure, scientists believe they probably eat the same types of food as other members of this family: small invertebrates.

Behavior and reproduction: Scientists know little about this frog's behavior. Some adult frogs have been spotted from 3.3 to 9.8 feet (1 to 3 meters) above the ground on the leaves of small trees and shrubs, but they may climb even higher in the trees. The frogs breed in tree holes and rotting logs that contain puddles of water from the rain. Females lay about ten eggs at a time in a clump of gel that sticks to the inside wall of the tree hole or hollow log just above the puddle. The eggs hatch into tadpoles, which drop down into the water. They are able to survive by eating little bits of dead leaves or other material that is in the puddle. The tadpoles grow inside the puddle and eventually turn into froglets.

Painted Indonesian treefrogs and people: This frog does not survive well in forests that have been changed by people. Even a small amount of logging can cause a population to die off.

Conservation status: The IUCN considers this species to be Near Threatened, which means that it is at risk of becoming threatened with extinction in the future. Although the frogs live in many areas of southeastern Asia, they are not common anywhere. Ecologists are concerned about the future of this frog because more and more of its forests are being cut down by local people and by loggers. Some populations of the painted Indonesian treefrog live in areas that are protected from logging. ∎