Taipei tree frog facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Taipei tree frog |
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The Taipei tree frog (Zhangixalus taipeianus) is a special type of frog that lives in trees. It belongs to the Rhacophoridae family. This frog is only found in central and northern Taiwan. It's a medium-sized tree frog. Female frogs are about 4.5 to 5.5 centimeters long. Male frogs are a bit smaller, measuring about 3.5 to 4.5 centimeters.
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Where the Taipei Tree Frog Lives
This amazing frog lives in many different places. You can find it in warm, wet subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It also lives in wet mountain forests, swamps, and places where water sometimes collects, like marshes. Farmers' fields, especially plantations and ponds, are also home to these frogs. They have been seen at heights up to 1500 meters above sea level.
What the Taipei Tree Frog Looks Like
Adult male Taipei tree frogs are usually about 35 to 45 millimeters long. Female frogs are a bit bigger, from 45 to 55 millimeters. Their skin on their back is bright green. They have webbed skin on all four feet, which helps them move around. They also have large climbing pads on their toes, like little sticky disks, to help them climb trees.
One cool thing about this frog is that it can change its color! It can go from dark brown to light green. Some frogs even have yellow, blue, or white spots or other marks on their skin. Their belly and legs are usually yellow. The iris of their eye, which is the colored part, is also yellow.
Taipei Tree Frog Life Cycle
Adult Taipei tree frogs spend most of their time in trees. But when it's time to lay eggs, they climb down to the ground. The male frog digs a small hole in the mud. This is usually near a rice paddy or a pond. Sometimes, they dig under straw or leaves to hide their nest.
Once the hole is ready, the male frog sits inside and sings to attract females. Male frogs can be quite protective of their nesting spots and might even fight other males for the best places. After a female frog chooses a male, she lays her eggs in the hole. She then covers the eggs with a special foam. Each female can lay between 300 and 400 eggs at one time!
The baby frogs, called tadpoles, are gray-white with spots. They swim in the water at the bottom of the hole for about 40 days. If there's enough rain, the tadpoles can then swim out of the hole and into the nearby rice paddy or pond, where they continue to grow.
Why the Taipei Tree Frog Needs Our Help
The Taipei tree frog is listed as "vulnerable" by the IUCN. This means it needs our help to survive. One big reason is that farmers in Taiwan are changing how they grow rice. They are using different farming methods and changing the rice paddies. This leaves fewer good places for the tadpoles to grow and escape into the water. Protecting their homes is very important for these unique frogs.
See also
- List of protected species in Taiwan
- List of endemic species of Taiwan
