Amphibians · Anura · Hylidae

Small-headed Treefrog

Dendropsophus microcephalus

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The small-headed treefrog is a species of amphibian of the family Hylidae. The head is flat and the snout rounded and short. The eyes have elliptical pupils set horizontally. The nostrils face sideways and the area between them is slightly concave. This species can undergo a change of colour. At night the back is pale yellow with several brown or light brown markings. By day the back is tan, yellow or light brown with darker brown or red blotches. This frog has uniformly yellow thighs with a brown line, often edged by a narrow white line running from the nostril to the vent.

Size

2 cm – 3 cm

Lifespan

4 years

Diet

Insectivore

Feeds mainly on insects and other invertebrates.

Activity

Nocturnal

Active mainly at night.

Social structure

Colony

Lives in large concentrations, often for breeding reasons.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

RainforestFreshwaterGrasslandInsectivore Nocturnal Colonial Amphibian Rainforest Freshwater Grassland

13countries7same family

Fun facts

Its choruses are among the densest in the Neotropics: hundreds of males calling at once from the vegetation over a pool make a noise that makes conversation difficult a few metres away.
The males time their calls so as not to overlap with their neighbour, alternating within microseconds so that each is audible separately to the females.
It is one of the most abundant frogs in the ditches and pools of tropical America, and it benefits from the waterlogged areas created by roads and clearance.
Males call in very large choruses and synchronise their calls: they alternate and overlap following precise rules, so that their call is not masked by the neighbour's.
That acoustic competition is a classic model for the study of animal communication in noisy environments.
It is tiny, about three centimetres long, and pale yellow with brown lines that camouflage it against dry grass.
It breeds in temporary pools and its tadpoles develop quickly before the water disappears.
It is abundant and tolerant of disturbed environments, which makes it common in roadside ditches and field margins.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (amphibian)
Habitat & environment: Vegetation over pools, ditches and wetlands of tropical America
Sexual maturity: 10 months
Gestation / incubation: Larval development in pools and flooded ground
Litter / clutch size: 200 eggs

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dendropsophus_microcephalus