Summary ⁶

The canyon tree frog (Hyla arenicolor) is a species of tree frog native to the rocky plateau areas of southern United States, primarily in New Mexico and Arizona, but it also ranges to Utah, Texas, and Colorado, and as far south as the Mexican states of Michoacán, México, Guanajuato, Guerrero, and Oaxaca.

Description ⁷

Hyla arenicolor adult frogs range from 32-57 mm in SVL. It has rough warty skin which prevents desiccation. Webbing is well developed but does not extend to the hind leg's fifth toe. Toe pads are considerably enlarged. It is distinguished from similar species by having a dark-edged light spot beneath the eye, instead of a dark bar running through the eye. Dorsal coloration is brown to gray and randomly spotted, while ventral coloration is cream to orange-yellow. This coloration aids in its ability to camouflage. When exposed to sun, the dorsal coloration changes from being normally dark to a light gray. (Stebbins 2003).

Hyla arenicolor feeds on a variety of insects, including beetles, ants, and caterpillers (Behler 1979).

Albinos have been found only in this species of Hyla. In albino frogs, the eyes have red pupils with white irises (Van Devender 1969).

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Katja Schulz, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2701/4428887672_5699785323.jpg
2. (c) Katja Schulz, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4042/4428121883_22b49db4aa.jpg
3. (c) 2010 California Academy of Sciences, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=315323&one=T
4. (c) 2000 California Academy of Sciences, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=24704&one=T
5. (c) 2000 California Academy of Sciences, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=24705&one=T
6. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyla_arenicolor
7. (c) AmphibiaWeb © 2000-2015 The Regents of the University of California, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://eol.org/data_objects/34268737

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• AMNH Amphibian Species of the World
• AmphibiaWeb
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HerpMapper
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
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