The Cuban tree frog (''Osteopilus septentrionalis'') is a large species of

tree frog A tree frog (or treefrog) 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 clos ...

that is native to

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

, the

Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of its population. ...

, and the

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

; but has become invasive in several other places around the Americas. Its wide diet and ability to thrive in urban areas has made it a highly

invasive species An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...

with established colonies in places such as

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, the Hawaiian island of

Oahu Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northwe ...

, and the

Caribbean Islands Most of the Caribbean countries are islands in the Caribbean Sea, with only a few in inland lakes. The largest islands include Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica and Puerto Rico. Some of the smaller islands are referred to as a ''rock'' or ''reef.'' ''I ...

. These tree frogs can vary in size from 2 to 5.5 inches (5 to 12.7 cm) in length. Due to their large size, Cuban tree frogs can eat a wide variety of things, particularly native tree frogs, and their removal has shown to result in an increase in the amount of native tree frogs in an area. The tadpoles of Cuban tree frogs also heavily compete with native frog tadpoles, which can cause negative effects in body mass, size at metamorphosis, and growth rates for the native tadpoles.

Description

Cuban tree frogs are the largest tree frogs in North America, ranging from 2 to 5.5 inches or (5 to 12.7 cm) in length. Cuban tree frogs are mostly gray, brown, or green, with young frogs having more green coloration than adults. These frogs have rough, warty skin with blotchy or mottled patterning. Cuban tree frogs have the ability to change their color and pattern to camouflage themselves. The inner thighs of these frogs are bright yellow, which helps to confuse a predator when the frog jumps and reveals the color. The toes have sticky pads that are useful in their arboreal life. The skin on their heads is fused to the skull; if the head of an adult frog is rubbed (between the eyes), the skin does not move. This special adaptation prevents water loss, since fewer blood vessels occur in the "co-ossified" (fused) area. Cuban tree frogs are able to secrete a toxic mucus from their skin which can cause a fiery sensation if it makes contact with a person's eyes.

Behavior

Cuban tree frogs are mainly nocturnal and sleep during the day, preferring to hunt and breed when the sun goes down. Being very voracious, this tree frog will eat almost anything large enough to fit in its mouth, including smaller frogs. Their foraging will occasionally take them up

utility pole A utility pole, commonly referred to as a transmission pole, telephone pole, telecommunication pole, power pole, hydro pole, telegraph pole, or telegraph post, is a column or post used to support overhead power lines and various other public util ...

s, where they can cause short-circuits of utility switches, causing costly power outages. Cuban tree frogs will sometimes sleep on palm trees or in potted plants, which can aid in their spread.

Life cycle

As with most frogs, female Cuban tree frogs are larger than males. During the breeding season, the male will have a black nuptial pad on his hand or wrist that helps him hold onto the female during

amplexus Amplexus (Latin "embrace") is a type of Mating, mating behavior exhibited by some External fertilization, externally fertilizing species (chiefly amphibians, Amphipoda, amphipods, and horseshoe crabs) in which a male grasps a female with his fro ...

. Cuban tree frogs breed year round depending on the conditions, preferring to breed during the wetter months. Optimal conditions are considered to be with high humidity (97.8%) and rain. A female can lay several hundred eggs to over a thousand in a single

clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that allows an output shaft to be disconnected from a rotating input shaft. The clutch's input shaft is typically attached to a motor, while the clutch's output shaft is connected to the mechanism that does th ...

. Eggs can hatch in under 30 hours and tadpoles can fully develop in one month. They have wide

caudal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported only ...

s and two rows of labial teeth on the top of their mouths and four rows on the bottom. Tadpoles survive on

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

and will occasionally eat other tadpoles, and on rare occasions, recently metamorphosed juveniles. After

metamorphosis Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops including birth transformation or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and different ...

, froglets are between long.

Distribution

The Cuban tree frog is native to

, the

, and the

. This large frog has been introduced in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, the

US Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and a Territories of the United States, territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Isl ...

, and the

British Virgin Islands The British Virgin Islands (BVI), officially the Virgin Islands, are a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean, to the east of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands and north-west ...

. Whether the species was native to the

Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...

region of

is debated, or if it was introduced to the area. First discovered in the 1930s, these frogs arrived via cargo ships in the 1800s. They can survive in

brackish water Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuary ...

, which may have helped the species to spread to various islands. The Cuban tree frogs' progressive colonization into the mainland of Florida is believed to be abetted by use of State Road A1A construction during the 1940s. The species is now established in southern Florida and parts of the panhandle region, and can be found as far north as

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

. The Cuban tree frog is known to hitchhike on shipments of potted plants, vegetation, packaging, boats, and other motorized vehicles. Once in a new location, the frogs become an

. In

, they have become a predator of the common coquí (''Eleutherodactylus coqui''). They have several good colonizing traits, such as high

fecundity Fecundity is defined in two ways; in human demography, it is the potential for reproduction of a recorded population as opposed to a sole organism, while in population biology, it is considered similar to fertility, the capability to produc ...

, short generation time, a diverse diet, good competitive ability, and the ability to coexist with humans. In addition, they also secrete a toxic mucus from their skin which helps to limit the number of natural predators. Cuban tree frogs are known to inhabit a variety of habitats, including

estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

, low-density suburban development, small towns, agricultural areas, particularly ones with exotic plants, and lowland forests and swamps. Within their habitats, they can be found in damp, shady areas, particularly around shrubs and trees, by

cisterns A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...

, rain barrels, and buildings. They like to be near medium and large sized trees and prefer conditions where the temperature remains above 10 degrees Celsius.

Conservation

This large frog directly impacts native ecosystems by eating native frogs, lizards, and snakes, and poses a threat to the

biodiversity Biodiversity is the variability of life, life on Earth. It can be measured on various levels. There is for example genetic variability, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and Phylogenetics, phylogenetic diversity. Diversity is not distribut ...

of the areas into which it spreads by causing native tree frog populations to decline. These effects are most noticeable in urban and suburban areas, where native tree frogs, such as the

American green tree frog The American green tree frog (''Dryophytes cinereus'' or ''Hyla cinerea'') is a common Species, arboreal species of New World tree frog belonging to the family Hylidae. This nocturnal insectivore is moderately sized and has a bright green to reddi ...

(''Hyla cinerea'') and the squirrel treefrog (''Hyla squirella'') are rapidly disappearing. It has spread throughout peninsular Florida, and is also commonly found in isolated populations as far north as southern Georgia. It is inadvertently carried on vehicles or ornamental plants, spreading to new areas, and has been transported as far north and west as

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

, Canada. Because of its effects on the biodiversity, some experts have recommended killing the animal when it is found in a new habitat. This can be done, most humanely, through the application of Orajel to the abdominal skin, waiting fifteen minutes for the frog to be fully anaesthetized, and then placing it in a freezer for a few hours.

In captivity

Cuban tree frogs are commonly available in the

pet A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive/ cute appearances, inte ...

trade within the United States. They are inexpensive, and when cared for properly tend to live five to ten years. They feed readily on any animal they can fit in their mouths, which can result in cannibalistic behavior if frogs housed together have a significant size difference. Their toxic mucus can burn the eyes and trigger an allergic (or asthmatic) reaction; as a result, this species is not an ideal pet species, especially for children. The Cuban tree frog's colonization of

is believed to be a result of accidental or deliberate release of pets. Therefore, the species is now banned from sale in Hawaii. Conviction of importation of a Cuban tree frog carries a maximum fine of $25,000 and a year in jail.

References

External links

The Cuban Treefrog in Florida.
University of Florida IFAS.
Cuban Treefrog - ''Osteopilus septentrionalis''.
Florida Wildlife Extension. University of Florida. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cuban Tree Frog Osteopilus Fauna of the Bahamas Fauna of the Cayman Islands Amphibians of Cuba Amphibians described in 1841 Taxa named by André Marie Constant Duméril Taxa named by Gabriel Bibron

Description

Behavior

Life cycle

Distribution

Conservation

In captivity

References

Further reading

External links