''Leptopelis vermiculatus'', also known as the peacock tree frog, Amani forest treefrog, or vermiculated tree frog, is a species of frog found in forest areas in Tanzania. Sometimes the common name big-eyed tree frog is used, but this may also refer to another species, ''

Leptopelis macrotis ''Leptopelis macrotis'', sometimes called the big-eyed forest tree frog, is a species of frog in the family Arthroleptidae. It is found in the rainforests of Sierra Leone, southern Guinea, Liberia, Ivory Coast, and southern Ghana. Notice that sim ...

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Description

This species is a medium to large frog ranging from 40–85 mm in length. It has two very different colour phases. In one phase, they are a bright green with scattered black specks all over the dorsal surface and the sides are marble with black and white. With some specimens, the end of the tibia to the toes, forearms and upper lip have white blotching outlined with dark green or black. In the other phase, they are brown with an irregular-shaped, darker brown triangular patch on the dorsum. Randomly placed darker or lighter brown spots and patches may appear over the dorsal surface, legs and forearms and a dark brown streak often runs from behind the tympanum ending halfway between the armpit and groin. In both phases, the ventral surface is cream-white. Some specimens show a transition between both phases and change from the green phase to the brown phase as they mature. The

eye Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conv ...

s are very big compared with body size and are golden with brown lines and flecks. Its large toe pads are used for climbing. The tympanum is distinct. They are sometimes kept as pets.

Ecology and behaviour

This species inhabits the closed-canopy wet tropical

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

s of Tanzania between the altitudes of 900 and 1800 m. Males call while in the water, and are very territorial. They have two different calls: one is a “ga…ga…ga”, used for attracting females, and the other is a “rrrrrrrr-ga” used for deterring other males of the same species. They are

insectivorous A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects. The first vertebrate insectivores were ...

Similar species

This species is very similar to the yellow-spotted tree frog (''

Leptopelis flavomaculatus ''Leptopelis flavomaculatus'' is a species of frog in the family Arthroleptidae. It is found in the lowlands eastern and southern Africa, from Mozambique north of the Save River and Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimb ...

''), a species that also varies greatly in dorsal patterning and colouration. The yellow-spotted tree frog, in its green phase, lacks the fine black specks present over the dorsum in the big-eyed tree frog's green phase. The brown phase of the yellow-spotted tree frog has a white blotch on the elbow, which brown-phase big-eyed tree frogs lack.

References

AmphibiaWeb - ''Leptopelis vermiculatus''Global Amphibiam Assessment - ''Leptopelis vermiculatus''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1525786 vermiculatus Frogs of Africa Amphibians of Tanzania Endemic fauna of Tanzania Amphibians described in 1909 Taxa named by George Albert Boulenger