| Little grass frog | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Hylidae |
| Genus: | Pseudacris |
| Species: | P. ocularis |
| Binomial name | |
| Pseudacris ocularis | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
The little grass frog (Pseudacris ocularis) is a species of chorus frog endemic to the Southeastern United States. It is currently the smallest North American anuran and occurs in a wide variety of ephemeral and semi-permanent wetlands. [2]
P. ocularis is the smallest frog in North America, only reaching a maximum head-body length of 19 mm (0.75 in). It is normally pale brown, but can have a green or pink tinge. This species is further characterized by a variable dark stripe which runs through each of the frog's eyes and down the sides of its body. The Latin term ocularis translates to "of the eye" in reference to this bold ocular stripe. [3]
This species occurs in a wide variety of ephemeral and semi-permanent wetlands in the southeastern Coastal Plain and favors grassy areas in and around cypress ponds and similar sites. This species can be used as an indicator of healthy wetlands. In urbanized wetlands P. ocularis is noticeably absent. [4] It is commonly found on lower tree trunks and foliage up to a height of 1 m or more; males prefer these sites as calling perches. However, they spend a considerable amount of their foraging time on the ground. [5] This species possesses the ability to rotate its head and neck more than other frog species due to unusual flexibility in its vertebral column. This is thought to aid in searching for prey or looking for a more suitable perch before leaping. [6] The majority of food items consist of arthropods that are associated with leaf litter and/or soil—springtails, ants, thrips, palpigrades, etc. [7] There has been some recorded research showing that adults have fed on large roaches, walking sticks, and mites. [8]
To gain a female's attention, males will remain perched on top of grass stems or tree trunks and call. This calling is most often compared to high insect-like chirps. [9] P. ocularis The little Grass Frog breeds in shallow, fish free wetlands, including cypress domes, marshes, bogs, wet prairies, wet flatwoods, and floodplain forests [10] generally breeds from January to September in most of their range, but can breed year-round in Florida. Females can generally reproduce more than once per annual cycle. The eggs will usually be laid on a pond bottom or vegetation in shallow water. [11] Females lay up to 200 eggs with 1-5 eggs per cluster. Eggs take 1–2 days to hatch and larvae take 7–70 days to metamorphose. [12]
The little grass frog's call has 2 call components (pure tone followed by a train of pulses) which is unique in Family Hylidae. [13] P. ocularis is often active both day and night and can be active year-round in some parts of their range. [14]
The little grass frog has a few defensive mechanisms to avoid predation. Despite their small size, they can jump about 20 times their body length which can help them escape predators. [15] Their coloration also provides them with a great advantage. They have a cryptic coloration similar to the vegetation in the areas in which they live. The dark stripes through their eye and along their sides are also thought to help break-up their outline to more visual predators. [16] Some common predators are fish, larger frogs, and snakes. [17] Nymphs of Odonata are also known to prey on little grass frog larvae. [11]
A tadpole or polliwog is the larval stage in the biological life cycle of an amphibian. Most tadpoles are fully aquatic, though some species of amphibians have tadpoles that are terrestrial. Tadpoles have some fish-like features that may not be found in adult amphibians such as a lateral line, gills and swimming tails. As they undergo metamorphosis, they start to develop functional lungs for breathing air, and the diet of tadpoles changes drastically.
The ornate chorus frog is a species of chorus frog endemic to the Southeastern United States. Their distribution ranges from North Carolina, east to the very eastern part of Louisiana, and south to northern parts of Florida.
The spring peeper is a small chorus frog widespread throughout the eastern United States and Canada. It prefers permanent ponds due to its advantage in avoiding predation; however, it is very adaptable with respect to the habitat it can live in. In northern regions, the frog is able to endure below freezing temperatures due to the capacity of its liver to exude and flush the bloodstream with a glucose cryoprotectant which acts both as an anti-freeze in its blood, and allows organs like the heart to enter into a state of protected dormancy. The peeper earned its name from its chirping call, which marks the beginning of spring. Crucifer is derived from the Latin root meaning "cross-bearing", a reference to the cross-like pattern on the spring peeper's dorsal side.
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.
The European tree frog is a small tree frog. As traditionally defined, it was found throughout much of Europe, Asia and northern Africa, but based on molecular genetic and other data several populations formerly included in it are now recognized as separate species, limiting the true European tree frog to Europe from France to Poland and Greece.
The Pacific tree frog, also known as the Pacific chorus frog, has a range spanning the Pacific Northwest, from Northern California, Oregon, and Washington to British Columbia in Canada and extreme southern Alaska. They live from sea level to more than 10,000 feet in many types of habitats, reproducing in aquatic settings. They occur in shades of greens or browns and can change colors over periods of hours and weeks.
Anaxyrus fowleri, Fowler's toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. The species is native to North America, where it occurs in much of the eastern United States and parts of adjacent Canada. It was previously considered a subspecies of Woodhouse's toad.
The upland chorus frog is a species of chorus frog found in the United States. It was recently separated from the Western chorus frog, being identified as an individual species rather than a subspecies. They are a rarely seen species, but their calls are frequently heard soon after rains in the spring time.
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.
The oak toad is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to the coastal regions of southeastern United States. It is regarded as the smallest species of toad in North America, with a length of 19 to 33 mm.
The bird-voiced tree frog is a species of frog in the family Hylidae, endemic to the United States. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, shrub-dominated wetlands, and swamps.
The pine woods tree frog is a species of frog in the family Hylidae, endemic to the southeastern United States.
The Appalachianmountain chorus frog, formerly known as just the mountain chorus frog, is a species of frog in the family Hylidae. The species is endemic to the United States. The natural habitats of P. brachyphona are temperate forests, rivers, intermittent rivers, swamps, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, ponds, open excavations, and canals and ditches. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Brimley's chorus frog is a species of frog in the family Hylidae. It is endemic to the United States and is named for North Carolina zoologist C.S. Brimley.
Xenohyla truncata, the Izecksohn's Brazilian treefrog, is a species of frugivorous tree frog in the family Hylidae. It is endemic to the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Stefania evansi is a species of frog in the family Hemiphractidae. Stefania evansi is, along with other closely related frogs, known for its unusual reproductive mode where females carry the eggs and juveniles on their back. It is sometimes known under common names Groete Creek carrying frog, Groete Creek treefrog, or Evans' stefania. These names refer to its type locality, Groete Creek in the region Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Guyana, where the holotype was collected by one Dr. R. Evans.
Acrisinae is a subfamily of the tree frog family Hylidae. There are only two genera in this subfamily, Acris and Pseudacris. They are native to most of the Nearctic realm, and are found as far north as the Great Slave Lake in Canada, all across the United States, and down Baja California and some parts of northern Mexico. One species, the pacific tree frog, has been introduced to several locations outside its range, and it is possible that other species may have been as well.
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