Eggs hatch in about five days and metamorphosis takes place at about 45–65 days. These temporary bodies of water usually lack fish, and females preferentially lay their eggs in water bodies that lack fish or other predatory vertebrates and have lower desiccation risk. Eggs are laid in batches of 10 to 40 on the surfaces of shallow ponds and other small bodies of water. Female treefrogs have been found to be able to differentiate calls at scales of up to a few decibels. These individual calls are produced at high sound pressure levels (SPLs) reaching 85 to 90 dB and sustained noise levels in choruses commonly range between 70 and 80 dB SPL. Chorusing is most frequent at night, but individuals often call during daytime in response to thunder or other loud noises. There they form aggregations (choruses) and call together. Isolated males start calling from woodland areas during warm weather a week or more before migrating to temporary ponds to breed. In the Southeastern United States, Cope's gray treefrog breeds and calls from May to August. versicolor, but is smaller (25–50 mm in length vs 32–62 mm for the gray treefrog). They prefer to perch on pipes located along the edges of wetlands and close to trees, which suggests that the terrestrial habitat surrounding wetlands is an important component of the species habitat. When studying ice concentration of overwintering frogs, 40-50% of total body water was frozen. Glycerol production is low when the temperature is warmer, but when it gets colder, the glycerol in the body is rapidly produced. These frogs are one of the very few that can mobilize glycerol as a cryoprotectant. chrysoscelis has also been observed to practice freeze tolerance in a lab setting, which could help it survive in cold climates. While this species is most abundant in the southeast, it can be found as far north as Minnesota. versicolor may be present only in the Appalachians. chrysoscelis is more southerly it is apparently the species found in the lower elevation Piedmont and Coastal Plain of Virginia and the Carolinas. Skin secretions from this species may be irritating or toxic to mouth, eyes, other mucous membranes. To enforce speciation there may be unknown mechanisms of reinforcement deployed between these species and further research may be fruitful. versicolor but there may be a limited amount of interfertility in sympatry. chrysoscelis is known to be largely intersterile with D. Despite currently sharing habitat, the two species generally do not interbreed.ĭ. chrysoscelis in the last major ice age, when areas of extremely low temperatures divided populations. versicolor is believed to have evolved from D. versicolor is tetraploid, having double the usual number of chromosomes. chrysoscelis is diploid, having two complete sets of chromosomes, the usual condition in vertebrates. versicolor reveals differences in chromosome number. Microscopic inspection of the chromosomes of D. The specific name, chrysoscelis, is from Greek chrysos, gold, and scelis, leg. Taxonomy Įdward Drinker Cope described the species in 1880. chrysoscelis is reported to be slightly smaller, more arboreal, and more tolerant of dry conditions than D. The only readily noticeable difference between the two species is the mating call - Cope's has a faster-paced and slightly higher-pitched call than D. These are treefrogs of woodland habitats, though they will sometimes travel into more open areas to reach a breeding pond. Both species are variable in color, mottled gray to gray-green, resembling the bark of trees. It is almost indistinguishable from the gray treefrog ( Dryophytes versicolor), and shares much of its geographic range. Cope's gray treefrog ( Dryophytes chrysoscelis) is a species of treefrog found in the United States.
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