Peppered tree frog

Peppered tree frog
Conservation status
Data Deficient  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Anura
Family:	Hylidae
Genus:	Ranoidea
Species:	R. piperata
Binomial name
Ranoidea piperata (Tyler and Davies, 1985)
Peppered tree frog range
Synonyms
Litoria piperata Tyler and Davies, 1985

The peppered tree frog (Ranoidea piperata) is a species of frog in the subfamily

In 1999, though, frogs similar in appearance to this species were discovered in streams north of their known range. The frogs had calls similar to Pearson's green tree frog, and genetic testing is required to determine if this population is the peppered tree frog or a disjunct population of Pearson's green tree frog.

Description

This is a small species of frog reaching 30 mm (1.2 in) in length. It is olive-grey to slate above, with many scattered black dots and tubercles across the back, flanks, and legs, giving the dorsal surface a "peppered" appearance, which gives this species its name. The tympanum is distinct. It has some green colouration on the side of the head. The toes discs are large, and toes are webbed. The belly is cream. An indistinct dark stripe runs from the shoulder, which is shared with other species in the leaf green tree frog complex, of which this species is a member. However, due to a lack of information on this species, it has been omitted from the complex key on that page.

Behaviour and ecology

This species is associated with flowing, rocky creeks in highland areas of northern New South Wales. The call of this species has not been recorded but is likely to be similar to other species in the R. phyllochroa complex. Males are likely to call during spring and summer from vegetation and rocks bordering streams and creeks.

This species and the

References