| Long-toed Tree Frog | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Hyperoliidae |
| Genus: | Leptopelis |
| Species: | L. xenodactylus |
| Binomial name | |
| Leptopelis xenodactylus Poynton, 1963 |
|
The Long-toed Tree Frog (Leptopelis xenodactylus) is a species of frog in the Hyperoliidae family. It is found in South Africa and possibly Lesotho. Its natural habitats are temperate grassland, swamps, freshwater marshes, and intermittent freshwater marches.
This species generally uses semi-permanent water and its eggs are presumably laid in a nest on the ground near water. As the name implies, these frogs are often seen in very tall trees or other high-growing vegetation. They do not normally descend to the ground, except to mate and spawn — some build foam nests on leaves and during their adult lives rarely leave the trees at all. Tree frogs are usually tiny, as their weight has to be carried by the branches and twigs of their habitat. While some reach 10 cm (4 in) or more, they are hardly in the same size class as "grass frogs." The tree-frogs typically have well-developed discs at the finger and toe tips; the fingers and toes themselves as well as the limbs tend to be rather long, resulting in a superior grasping ability.
It is threatened by habitat loss.