Litoria aurea
| Green and golden bell frog | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Hylidae |
| Genus: | Litoria |
| Species: | L. aurea |
| Binomial name | |
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Litoria aurea (Lesson, 1827) |
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The green and golden bell frog (Litoria aurea), also named the green bell frog, green and golden swamp frog and green frog, is a ground-dwelling tree frog native to eastern Australia. Despite its classification and climbing abilities, it does not live in trees and spends almost all of its time close to ground level. It can reach up to 11 cm (4.5 in) in length, making it one of Australia's largest frogs.
Coloured gold and green, the frogs are voracious eaters of insects, but will also eat larger prey, such as worms and mice. Unlike most frogs, they are active at day, although this is mostly to warm in the sun. They tend to be less active in winter except in warmer or wetter periods, and breed in the warmer months. Males reach maturity after around 9 months, while for the larger females, this does not occur until they are two years old. The frogs can engage in cannibalism, and males frequently attack and injure one another if they infringe on one another's space.
Many populations, particularly in the Sydney region, inhabit areas of infrequent disturbance, such as golf courses, disused industrial land, brick pits, and landfill areas. Though once one of the most common frogs in south-east Australia, the green and golden bell frog has endured major population declines, particularly in highland areas, leading to its current classification as globally vulnerable. Its numbers have continued to fall and are threatened by habitat loss and degradation, pollution, introduced species, and parasites and pathogens, including the chytrid Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. As most of the remaining populations live on private land, the logistics of the conservation effort can be complicated. Despite the situation in Australia, some frog populations have survived with more success in New Zealand and several other Pacific islands, where it has been introduced. However, unfortunately even in these areas the population of green and golden bell has been rapidly declining in the past few decades.
The common name, "green and golden bell frog", was first adopted by Harold Cogger in his 1975 book Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia. Before this, its common names were "golden frog" and "golden tree frog". The green and golden bell frog has many physical and behavioural characteristics representative of ranids, hence its original classification as Rana. It has a pointy snout, long legs, and almost complete toe webbing; the tympanum is large and distinct; and the overall body shape is similar to many Rana species. Like many frogs in the Rana genus, green and golden bell frogs are mostly aquatic, and only travel over land during periods of rainfall. It was removed from the genus because of anatomical differences with the family Ranidae. The bone and cartilage structural formations of the green and golden bell frog are closest to those of species in the family Hylidae; it was therefore reclassified.
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Wikipedia