Cope's gray treefrog

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Cope's gray treefrog
Hyla chrysoscelis UMFS 2016 1.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Hylidae
Genus: Dryophytes
Species:
D. chrysoscelis
Binomial name
Dryophytes chrysoscelis
(Cope, 1880)
Synonyms
  • Hyla chrysoscelisCope, 1880

Cope's gray treefrog [2] (Dryophytes chrysoscelis) is a species of treefrog found in the United States and Canada. It is almost indistinguishable from the gray treefrog ( Dryophytes versicolor ), and shares much of its geographic range. Both species are variable in color, mottled gray to gray-green, resembling the bark of trees. These are treefrogs of woodland habitats, though they will sometimes travel into more open areas to reach a breeding pond. The only readily noticeable difference between the two species is the mating call — Cope's has a faster-paced and slightly higher-pitched call than D. versicolor. In addition, D. chrysoscelis is reported to be slightly smaller, more arboreal, and more tolerant of dry conditions than D. versicolor. [3]

Contents

Taxonomy

Edward Drinker Cope described the species in 1880. The specific name, chrysoscelis, is from Greek chrysos, gold, and scelis, leg. [4]

Microscopic inspection of the chromosomes of D. chrysoscelis and D. versicolor reveals differences in chromosome number. D. chrysoscelis is diploid, having two complete sets of chromosomes, the usual condition in vertebrates. D. versicolor is tetraploid, having double the usual number of chromosomes. Generally, D. versicolor is believed to have evolved from D. chrysoscelis in the last major ice age, when areas of extremely low temperatures divided populations. Despite currently sharing habitat, the two species generally do not interbreed.

D. chrysoscelis is known to be largely intersterile with D. versicolor but there may be a limited amount of interfertility in sympatry. To enforce speciation there may be unknown mechanisms of reinforcement deployed between these species and further research may be fruitful. [5]

Description

Showing variation in color Hyla chrysoscelisPCCA20060401-2867B.jpg
Showing variation in color

Both D. chrysoscelis and D. versicolor have black-marked bright orange to yellow patches on their hind legs, which distinguishes them from other treefrogs, such as D. avivoca . [3] The bright-yellow pattern is normally hidden, but exposed when the frog leaps. This "flash pattern" likely serves to startle a predator as the frog makes its escape. [6] The pattern and color variations of skin for this species will change depending on the environment they are found in. [7] Similar hidden bright patterns are common in various Lepidoptera, for instance moths of the genus Catocala . [8] Both species of gray treefrogs are slightly sexually dimorphic. Males have black or gray throats in the breeding season, while the throats of the females are lighter. [9] Usually, the younger frogs in this species will often be seen more with the greenish color throughout the breeding seasons. As they age they will lose the greenish color and move towards the distinct gray color. [10]

D. chrysoscelis male showing black throat H chrysoscelis male.JPG
D. chrysoscelis male showing black throat

Skin secretions from this species may be irritating or toxic to mouth, eyes, other mucous membranes. [11]

Distribution and habitat

The range of D. chrysoscelis is more southerly; it is apparently the species found in the lower elevation Piedmont and Coastal Plain of Virginia and the Carolinas. In those areas, D. versicolor may be present only in the Appalachians. [3] While this species is most abundant in the southeast, it can be found as far north as Manitoba. D. chrysoscelis has also been observed to practice freeze tolerance in a lab setting, which could help it survive in cold climates. [12] These frogs are one of the very few that can mobilize glycerol as a cryoprotectant. Glycerol production is low when the temperature is warmer, but when it gets colder, the glycerol in the body is rapidly produced. [13] When studying ice concentration of overwintering frogs, 40-50% of total body water was frozen. [14] Studies have revealed that Cope's gray treefrog could be more resilient to climate change in the long-term, though populations may suffer short-term drawbacks. [15] Either way, distribution will hopefully change little in the long-term because of this. They prefer to perch on pipes located along the edges of wetlands and close to trees, which suggests that the terrestrial habitat surrounding wetlands is an important component of the species habitat. [16] The bird-voiced treefrog, D. avivoca, is similar to D. chrysoscelis and D. versicolor, but is smaller (25–50 mm in length vs 32–62 mm for the gray treefrog).

Behavior

Metamorphs are typically green Hyla chrysoscelis metamorph 2.jpg
Metamorphs are typically green
Male calling.

In the Southeastern United States, Cope's gray treefrog breeds and calls from May to August. Isolated males start calling from woodland areas during warm weather a week or more before migrating to temporary ponds to breed. There they form aggregations (choruses) and call together. Chorusing is most frequent at night, but individuals often call during daytime in response to thunder or other loud noises. These individual calls are produced at high sound pressure levels (SPLs) reaching 85 to 90 dB and sustained noise levels in choruses commonly range between 70 and 80 dB SPL. [17] Female treefrogs have been found to be able to differentiate calls at scales of up to a few decibels. [18] Females prefer calls with average frequencies over calls with frequencies that were 2 or 3 semitones lower than the population mean. [19] Eggs are laid in batches of 10 to 40 on the surfaces of shallow ponds and other small bodies of water. These temporary bodies of water usually lack fish, and females preferentially lay their eggs in water bodies that lack fish or other predatory vertebrates and have lower desiccation risk. [20] [21] [22] Eggs hatch in about five days and metamorphosis takes place at about 45–65 days. [3] [9] [23]

The diet of Cope's gray treefrog primarily consists of insects such as moths, mites, spiders, plant lice, and harvestmen. Snails have also been observed as a food source. Like most frogs, Dryophytes chrysocelis is an opportunistic feeder and may also eat smaller frogs, including other treefrogs. [24] Once the breeding season is over, Cope's gray treefrogs will forage continuously until winter. [25]

Cope's gray treefrog exhibits freeze tolerance. [26] Dryophytes chrysoscelis is capable of surviving temperatures as low as −8 °C (18 °F). [27] They can withstand the physiological challenges of corporeal freezing, by accumulating cryoprotective compounds of hepatic origin, including glycerol, urea, and glucose. [28]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hylidae</span> Family of frogs

Hylidae is a wide-ranging family of frogs commonly referred to as "tree frogs and their allies". However, the hylids include a diversity of frog species, many of which do not live in trees, but are terrestrial or semiaquatic.

<i>Hyla</i> Genus of amphibians

Hyla is a genus of frogs in the tree frog family Hylidae. As traditionally defined, it was a wastebasket genus with more than 300 species found in Europe, Asia, Africa, and across the Americas. After a major revision of the family, most of these have been moved to other genera so that Hyla now only contains 17 extant (living) species from Europe, northern Africa and Asia. The earliest known fossil member of this genus is †Hyla swanstoni from the Eocene of Saskatchewan, Canada, but its designation to Hyla happened before the major revision, meaning that its position needs confirmation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wood frog</span> Species of amphibian

Lithobates sylvaticus or Rana sylvatica, commonly known as the wood frog, is a frog species that has a broad distribution over North America, extending from the boreal forest of the north to the southern Appalachians, with several notable disjunct populations including lowland eastern North Carolina. The wood frog has garnered attention from biologists because of its freeze tolerance, relatively great degree of terrestrialism, interesting habitat associations, and relatively long-range movements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American green tree frog</span> Species of amphibian

The American green tree frog is a common arboreal species of New World tree frog belonging to the family Hylidae. This nocturnal insectivore is moderately sized and has a bright green to reddish-brown coloration. Commonly found in the central and southeastern United States, the frog lives in open canopy forests with permanent water sources and abundant vegetation. The American green tree frog is strictly aquatic during the hibernating and mating seasons. When defending its territory, the frog either emits aggressive call signals or resolves to grapple with intruders, seldom leading to injury or death. To avoid predation, the frog will leap into the water or jump into the treetops.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Japanese tree frog</span> Amphibian species from East Asia

Hyla japonica, commonly known as the Japanese tree frog, is a species of anuran native to Japan, China, and Korea. H. japonica is unique in its ability to withstand extreme cold, with some individuals showing cold resistance at temperatures as low as −30 °C for up to 120 days. H. japonica are not currently facing any notable risk of extinction and are classified by the IUCN as a species of "least concern". Notably, H. japonica have been sent to space in a study that explored the effect of microgravity on H. japonica. Hyla japonica is synonymous with Dryophytes japonicus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gray treefrog</span> Species of amphibian

The gray treefrog is a species of small arboreal holarctic tree frog native to much of the eastern United States and southeastern Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pine Barrens tree frog</span> Species of amphibian

The Pine Barrens tree frog is a species of New World tree frog. It is becoming rare due to habitat loss.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squirrel tree frog</span> Species of amphibian

The squirrel tree frog is a small species of tree frog found in the southeastern United States, from Texas to Virginia. This is an introduced species in the Bahamas. Squirrel tree frogs are small frogs, about 1.5 inches in length as adults. There are several color variations, but most commonly they are green and look very much like the American green tree frog. They can also be varying shades of yellow or brown, sometimes with white or brown blotching.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canyon tree frog</span> Species of amphibian

The canyon tree frog is a species of tree frog native to the rocky plateau areas of southern United States, primarily in New Mexico and Arizona, but it also ranges to Utah, Texas, and Colorado, and as far south as the Mexican states of Michoacán, México, Guanajuato, Guerrero, and Oaxaca.

<i>Dryophytes gratiosus</i> Species of amphibian

Dryophytes gratiosus, commonly known as the barking tree frog, is a species of tree frog endemic to the south-eastern United States. Formerly known as Hyla gratiosa.

<i>Dendropsophus ebraccatus</i> Species of amphibian

Dendropsophus ebraccatus, also known as the hourglass treefrog, referring to the golden-brown hourglass shape seen surrounded by skin yellow on its back. Their underbellies are yellow. Their arms and lower legs usually display bold patterns while their upper legs or thighs are light yellow giving them the appearance of wearing no pants. The species name "ebraccata" translates to "without trousers" in Latin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pine woods tree frog</span> Species of amphibian

The pine woods tree frog is a species of frog in the family Hylidae, endemic to the southeastern United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hibernaculum (zoology)</span> Wild animal shelter

A hibernaculum is a place in which an animal seeks refuge, such as a bear using a cave to overwinter. The word can be used to describe a variety of shelters used by many kinds of animals, including insects, toads, lizards, snakes, bats, rodents, and primates of various species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tree frog</span> Type of amphibian

A tree frog is any species of frog that spends a major portion of its lifespan in trees, known as an arboreal state. Several lineages of frogs among the Neobatrachia suborder have given rise to treefrogs, although they are not closely related to each other.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hylinae</span> Subfamily of amphibians

Hylinae is a large subfamily of "tree frogs", family Hylidae.

<i>Dryophytes</i> Genus of amphibians

Dryophytes is a genus of Ameroasian tree frogs in the family Hylidae. They are found mostly in North America, but the genus also includes three species found in eastern Asia.

<i>Dryophytes suweonensis</i> Species of amphibian

Dryophytes suweonensis, the Suweon treefrog or Suwon treefrog, is a species of frog in the family Hylidae endemic to the Korean Peninsula probably from the Imjin River to the Mangyeong River, south of Iksan. Its distribution and population have been assessed to be below 800 individuals and the status of the species has been updated as Endangered by the IUCN. The natural habitat of the species has been generally transformed into rice fields and it is threatened by habitat loss.

References

  1. ↑ IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2022). "Dryophytes chrysoscelis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2022: e.T55448A196334128. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T55448A196334128.en . Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  2. ↑ Hyla chrysoscelis, Amphibian Species of the World 5.6
  3. 1 2 3 4 Martof, B. S., et al. (1980). Amphibians and Reptiles of the Carolinas and Virginia. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. ISBN   0-8078-4252-4.
  4. ↑ Family Group Names in Diptera Archived 2008-04-11 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ Noor, Mohamed A F (1999). "Reinforcement and other consequences of sympatry". Heredity . 83 (5). The Genetics Society (Nature): 503–508. doi: 10.1038/sj.hdy.6886320 . ISSN   0018-067X. PMID   10620021.
  6. ↑ Tesler, P. Exploratorium The Amazing, Adaptable Frog. The Exploratorium. San Francisco.
  7. ↑ Bogart, James P.; Jaslow, Alan P. (1979). Distribution and call parameters of Hyla chrysoscelis and Hyla versicolor in Michigan. Toronto: Royal Ontario Museum. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.52057. ISBN   0-88854-229-1.
  8. ↑ Sargent. (1969). A suggestion regarding hindwing diversity among moths of the genus Catocala OF (Noctuidae). Archived 2007-03-13 at the Wayback Machine Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 23: 261-264.
  9. 1 2 Tyning, T. F. (1990). A Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. ISBN   0-316-81719-8.
  10. ↑ Roseman, Kimberly (2017). "The Utility of Hyla squirrella Microsatellite DNA Markers for Population Genetic Studies of Hyla versicolor and Hyla chrysoscelis". Western Illinois University ProQuest Dissertations. ProQuest   1933027058.
  11. ↑ "Species profile: Cope's Gray Treefrog (Hyla chrysoscelis)". Savannah River Ecology Laboratory - University of Georgia.
  12. ↑ Costanzo, Jon (May 1, 1992). "Freeze Tolerance as an Overwintering Adaptation in Cope's Grey Treefrog (Hyla chrysoscelis)". Copeia. 1992 (2): 565–569. doi:10.2307/1446222. JSTOR   1446222.
  13. ↑ Amarl M. C. F. 2018
  14. ↑ Costanzo, Jon P.; Wright, Michael F.; Lee, Richard E. (1992). "Freeze Tolerance as an Overwintering Adaptation in Cope's Grey Treefrog (Hyla chrysoscelis)". Copeia. 1992 (2): 565–569. doi:10.2307/1446222. ISSN   0045-8511. JSTOR   1446222.
  15. ↑ Litmer, Allison; Murray, Christopher (2020). "Critical Thermal Capacities of Hyla chrysoscelis in Relation to Season". Journal of Herpetology. 54 (4): 413–417. doi:10.1670/19-124.
  16. ↑ Pittman; Jendrek, A.L; Price, S.; Dorcas, M.E (2008). "Habitat Selection and Site Fidelity of Cope's Gray Treefrog (Hyla chrysoscelis) at the Aquatic-Terrestrial Ecotone". Journal of Herpetology. 42 (2): 378–385. doi:10.1670/07-1702.1. S2CID   86035585.
  17. ↑ Lee, N.; Ward, J. L.; Vélez, A.; Micheyl, C.; Bee, M. A. (2017). "Frogs exploit statistical regularities in noisy acoustic scenes to solve cocktail-party-like problems". Current Biology. 27 (5): 743–750. Bibcode:2017CBio...27..743L. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2017.01.031. PMC   5340627 . PMID   28238657.
  18. ↑ Bee, Mark A.; Vélez, Alejandro; Forester, James D. (2012-05-01). "Sound level discrimination by gray treefrogs in the presence and absence of chorus-shaped noise". The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America. 131 (5): 4188–4195. Bibcode:2012ASAJ..131.4188B. doi:10.1121/1.3699271. ISSN   0001-4966. PMC   3356323 . PMID   22559390.
  19. ↑ Schrode, K. M.; Ward, J. L.; Vélez, A.; Bee, M. A. (2012). "Female preferences for spectral call properties in the western genetic lineage of Cope's gray treefrog (Hyla chrysoscelis)". Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. 66 (12): 1595–1606. doi:10.1007/s00265-012-1413-5. PMC   3564599 . PMID   24496093.
  20. ↑ Resetarits, Jr., William J. (1989). "Choice of oviposition site by Hyla chrysoscelis: role of predators and competitors". Ecology. 70 (1): 220–228. Bibcode:1989Ecol...70..220R. doi:10.2307/1938428. JSTOR   1938428.
  21. ↑ Pintar, Matthew R.; Resetarits, Jr., William J. (2017). "Out with the old, in with the new: oviposition preference matches larval success in Cope's gray treefrog, Hyla chrysoscelis" (PDF). Journal of Herpetology. 51 (2): 186–189. doi:10.1670/16-019. S2CID   53633353.
  22. ↑ Pintar, Matthew R.; Resetarits, Jr., William J. (2017). "Relative predation risk and risk of desiccation co-determine oviposition preferences in Cope's gray treefrog, Hyla chrysoscelis". Oecologia. 184 (2): 423–430. Bibcode:2017Oecol.184..423P. doi:10.1007/s00442-017-3875-7. PMID   28470466. S2CID   2743867.
  23. ↑ Rubio, M. Atlanta's Backyard Herps. Accessed 2 June 2013.
  24. ↑ Conant, Roger (1975). A field guide to reptiles and amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. Isabelle Hunt Conant ([2d ed.] ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN   0-395-19979-4. OCLC   1423604.
  25. ↑ Ritke, M. E.; Babb, J. G.; Ritke, M. K. (1992). "Temporal patterns of reproductive activity in the gray treefrog (Hyla chrysoscelis)". Journal of Herpetology. 26 (1): 107–111. doi:10.2307/1565039. JSTOR   1565039.
  26. ↑ Ward, J. L.; Love, E. K.; Vélez, A.; Buerkle, N. P.; O'Bryan, L. R.; Bee, M. A. (2013). "Multitasking males and multiplicative females: dynamic signalling and receiver preferences in Cope's grey treefrog". Animal Behaviour. 86 (2): 231–243. doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.05.016.
  27. ↑ Adaptations of Frogs to Survive Freezing
  28. ↑ do Amaral, M. C. F.; Frisbie, J.; Crum, R. J.; Goldstein, D. L.; Krane, C. M. (2020). "Hepatic transcriptome of the freeze-tolerant Cope's gray treefrog, Dryophytes chrysoscelis: responses to cold acclimation and freezing". BMC Genomics. 21 (1): 226. doi: 10.1186/s12864-020-6602-4 . PMC   7069055 . PMID   32164545.

[1]

Further reading

  1. ↑ do Amaral, M. C. F., Frisbie, J., Goldstein, D. L., & Krane, C. M. (2018). The cryoprotectant system of Cope’s gray treefrog, Dryophytes chrysoscelis: responses to cold acclimation, freezing, and thawing. Journal of Comparative Physiology. B, Biochemical, Systemic, and Environmental Physiology, 188(4), 611–621. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00360-018-1153-6
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