| 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 frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura. The oldest fossil "proto-frog" Triadobatrachus is known from the Early Triassic of Madagascar, but molecular clock dating suggests their split from other amphibians may extend further back to the Permian, 265 million years ago. Frogs are widely distributed, ranging from the tropics to subarctic regions, but the greatest concentration of species diversity is in tropical rainforest. Frogs account for around 88% of extant amphibian species. They are also one of the five most diverse vertebrate orders. Warty frog species tend to be called toads, but the distinction between frogs and toads is informal, not from taxonomy or evolutionary history.
Amplexus is a type of mating behavior exhibited by some externally fertilizing species in which a male grasps a female with his front legs as part of the mating process, and at the same time or with some time delay, he fertilizes the eggs, as they are released from the female's body. In amphibians, females may be grasped by the head, waist, or armpits, and the type of amplexus is characteristic of some taxonomic groups.
A tadpole 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. They prefer permanent ponds due to their advantage in avoiding predation; however, they are very adaptable with respect to the habitat they can live in. In northern regions, the frog is able to endure below freezing temperatures due to the capacity of their livers to exude and flush the bloodstream with a glucose cryoprotectant which acts both as an anti-freeze in their blood, and allows organs like the heart to enter into a state of protected dormancy. They are so called because of their chirping call that marks the beginning of spring. Crucifer is derived from the Latin root meaning "cross-bearing". This could be 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.
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.
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.
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.
Dendropsophus marmoratus is a species of frog in the family Hylidae. It is found in the Amazon rainforest and montane forests in the eastern piedmont, in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, intermittent freshwater marshes, and heavily degraded former forest. "Marmoratus" in Latin means "marble," perhaps referring to the dorsal coloring pattern. It is threatened by habitat loss.
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.
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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