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 White's
Tree Frogs
(Litoria
caerulea)
The White's Tree Frog is often called the
Dumpy Tree Frog, because it often looks
really flat and flabby. Its eternally
cheerful expression has also gained it the
nickname of the Smiling Frog.
White's typically live in Northeast
Australia, New Guinea, Indonesia and the
Torres Straits. There is some evidence of
remains of the species being found in South
America. A few scientists believe that the
White's Tree Frogs were originally from
South America, and in the 1800's migrated to
Australia. Others believe the migration took
place thousands of years ago.
They can now be found in all kinds of
habitats, frequently near homes, and around
water tanks and cisterns. Breeding tends to
only happen in pools of at least 12" of
water in really huge terrariums or
greenhouses. These frogs are known to live
up to 21 years in captivity, and 15 years is
not uncommon. Their life span in the wild
generally much shorter due to heavy
predation.
White's Tree Frogs grow from between 4"
(males) to 5½" (females) from nose to snout.
Their skin is smooth and generally green,
and their rubbery texture helps them to
retain water. The higher the humidity
and the lower the temperature, the darker
and browner a White's will become.
Conversely, under warmer and drier
conditions, they tend to look brighter,
often almost blue.
This hardy nocturnal frog is excellent for
beginners. It requires a really big
and tall terrarium, ideally 25 gallons or
more, with lots of plants and hollow
branches. Either the arboreal tank or
the terrestrial tank work well for White's.
The tall arboreal tank is better because
these tree frogs spend most of their time
high in their tank's branches.
Humidity should be moderate. Spray the
tank with dechlorinated water a few times
every week. Good ventilation is
essential to prevent illness.
Temperatures should range between 86ºF
during the daytime and 60ºF at night.
Colder temperatures can kill a White's Tree
Frog quickly and painfully.
Substrate
NEVER use small, fine substrate such as
aspen chips, or cedar or pine shavings,
gravel, or sand. Chips and shavings are too
dusty, and small bits can accidentally be
swallowed when your frog is eating.
This can be fatal. Larger chunks of
pine fir bark are generally the best choice.
Water
The
water dish in your tank is another big
issue. A dish that is six to eight inches
long and wide, and four to five inches deep,
is perfect. White's like to spread out in
the water and relax. As your frogs grow,
you'll have to get a bigger water dish.
Diet
The White's Tree Frog
eats larger insects like crickets,
cockroaches, locusts, moths and beetles.
They are known for eating non-stop, but many
sources warn about overfeeding. Determining
how much to feed the frog seems a bit
tricky, so your best bet is to check how fat
the frog is getting. A Whites Tree Frog's
weight can be tracked by checking the state
of the arches (like eyebrows) over the
frog's eardrums. If you can't see the ridges
at all, the frog is probably underweight, so
start feeding it more! If they get all big
and start rolling down over the eardrums,
it's probably getting fat. These arches,
called "tympanic ridges," can get so big
that they even start to cover the eyes. If
your frog is that fat, it DEFINITELY
needs to go on a diet and fast!
Sexing
Sexing a White's Tree Frog (telling the
difference between male and female) is
difficult. It cannot be done until the
frog reaches breeding age, approximately 1
year of age. At that time, males
develop "nuptual pads" (puffy little pads on
the place where their "thumbs" and "palms"
meet) during the breeding season. In
addition, some experts claim that only the
males croak and sing, though to my
knowledge, this has not been scientifically
proven. |
