Treefrog Trio

The rain showers this evening have me thinking treefrogs, so I pulled out a few images from the amphibian archives. When I initially spotted this little leaper, the lack of a distinct white or yellow line down its side led me to the mistaken conclusion that it must be a squirrel treefrog.

Further observation indicates that it is another green treefrog. It is larger than the typical squirrel treefrog and its tympanum is entirely green, rather than the brown or mottled tympanum typical of squirrel treefrogs.

There appear to be a number of small flies in the asters this afternoon as well...perhaps that's what lured us down from the trees.

It's a bit bright here in the sun for this normally nocturnal creature, so I suspect it'll soon completely disappear beneath the verdant foliage for a few hours.

The gray treefrog is more common here in the neighborhood than the green. It's difficult to imagine a more effective camouflage than that of the green treefrog, but I'd have to say this fellow is making a pretty good go of it. On a rainy evening like this, it's not uncommon to encounter dozens of these on the neighborhood streets within a few miles of home.

The barking treefrog is a little less common around here, so I was thrilled to encounter this one up close. There's no need to explain the origins of the barking treefrog's name. In fact, if it has been raining in your neck of the woods today, step out on the porch after dark and you just might hear one sounding off. It is the largest of the local treefrogs, and has much bumpier skin than the other green colored treefrogs in our area. 

You may be wondering why all these "tree" frogs are low enough for me to see them. They do actually live in the tree canopy, but they come down from the trees during spring and summer rains to breed, and this is when we are most likely to cross paths with them. So if you're out and about on a rainy evening, keep your eyes open and watch out for our tree-dwelling brethren.