Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Hylidae
Genus: Litoria
Species: L. ewingii
Binomial name: Litoria ewingii
Common name: Brown tree frog, Southern brown tree frog, Whistling tree frog, Ewing's tree frog
Litoria ewingii is a species of tree frog native to Australia. Frogs and tadpoles of this species were released in Greymouth in the South Island in 1875. They were translocation from Greymouth to the Manawatu in the North Island later. They have now become quite widespread over all of the South Island and most of the southern and central North Island, with the odd record in the northern areas. They are also present on the Chatham Islands. They can be locally abundant. This species is found in a wide range of habitats.
Litoria ewingii is a small frog that is 25-45mm in length. The adults have pale fawn, cream, orange, or light brown sides and have a broad darker patch starting at the eyes and covering the majority of the back. They all have a white stripe along the jawline from the armpit, to at least, below the eye and sometimes to the end of the snout. The belly is cream. There can also be pure green or green striped colour morphs. Their feet have slightly expanded tips (suckers) that are used for climbing, and webbing is usually absent.
Litoria ewingii is an agile climber and jumper and is a voracious insectivore capable of leaping to catch a fly in mid-flight.
The female can lay >700 pigmented eggs in jelly clumps which are usually attached to submerged vegetation. The tadpoles are pale golden-yellow to dark grey and the fins are usually clear.
Litoria ewingii are unusual because they can freeze and survive.
Males call all year round from concealed positions within vegetation around ponds and streams making a weep-weep-weep call.
Listen to the call: Department of Conservation wav file https://www.doc.govt.nz/contentassets/2275c4aae6c84439886be1a12060719d/ewingii.wav
Thanks to Wikipedia for text and Information: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
