A Guide to the Amphibians
and Reptiles of California

Pseudacris cadaverina - California Treefrog

Click on a picture for a larger view

Range in California: Red

Listen to this frog:

One short call

More Sounds

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Adult male, San Diego County

Adult, Riverside County

Adult, San Diego County

Breeding adult male, San Diego County

Adult, Los Angeles County

Adult, San Diego County

Pale adult, San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles County. © Randy Teets.

Adult, Santa Monica Mountains,
Ventura County
© 2005 Brian Hubbs

Adult frogs on granite rocks next to a desert creek in San Diego County. These photos show how perfectly these frogs can blend in with their environment.
© Mark Gary

Adult , Santa Ana Mountains,
Orange County
© 2003 Bon Terra Consulting

Adults hiding between a rock and a concrete bridge pillar, Los Angeles County © Matthew Sinkhorn

Adults, San Diego County.
© Adam Clause.
California Treefrogs often assemble in large numbers at desert springs.

Close-up of enlarged pads on front toes

Comparison with Similar Sympatric Species

Comparison of a California Treefrog (bottom) and a Baja California Treefrog (top) coexisting in the same creek in the San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles County. Note the dark mask through the eye of the Baja California Treefrog which is not present on the California Treefrog.

Comparison of the undersides of a California Treefrog (top) and a Baja California Treefrog (bottom) coexisting in the same creek in the San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles County.

Breeding and Young

Calling adult male, San Diego County

Adult male and female in amplexus,
San Diego County

Tadpole, San Diego County

Recently metamorphosed juvenile,
San Diego County

Habitat

Desert Oasis pool , San Diego County

Desert creek habitat, San Diego County

Habitat, seasonal creek, Santa Ana Mountains, Riverside County

Habitat, creek, Riverside County

Habitat, small creek, San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles County

Habitat, riparian desert canyon,
Riverside County

Habitat, Santa Ana Mountains,
Orange County
© 2003 Bon Terra Consulting

Desert palm oasis habitat,
Riverside County

Habitat, San Gabriel Mountains,
Los Angeles County

Habitat, San Diego County

Short Videos

A male calls on a windy night from the edge of a small pond in San Diego County. He makes three distinct sounds - a low call, then several higher-pitched calls followed by some ratcheting encounter calls, ending with another high-pitched call. Other calling California Treefrogs are heard in the background.

At night at a small pond in San Diego County, after I make an imitation of his call, a male frog repeatedly makes what appears to be his encounter call while aggressively moving towards the camera until he finally hops away. A Red-spotted Toad and other CA Treefrogs are heard in the background.

A male calls on a windy night from the edge of a small pond in San Diego County. Other calling California Treefrogs are heard in the background.

California Treefrog tadpoles in a shallow sunny pool in a slow-moving creek flowing through a San Diego County desert canyon.

Description

Size

Adults are 1 - 2 inches long from snout to vent ( 2.5 - 5.1 cm).

Appearance

A small treefrog with webbing and expanded pads on the toes. Skin is rough and cryptically colored: gray or brown with dark blotches, tending to match the habitat. Usually there is no dark stripe through the eye as there is on the similar and sympatric Pseudacis hypochondriaca. The underside is whitish. Rear legs, groin, and lower abdomen are yellow. Males have dusky coloring on the throat.

Voice (Listen)

The advertisement call is a quick low-pitched duck-like quacking that ends abruptly and is given repeatedly. Males call at night. Males also produce a trilled encounter or warning call when interacting closely with other males of the species.

Behavior

Nocturnal. Takes shelter in shaded rock crevices or small depressions on boulders near water during the day. Most commonly found along stream channels. Outside of the breeding season, they do not spend much time in the water. Inactive during very cold and very hot and dry periods. Adults use spring and summer habitat near streams, then move to crevices higher above drainages in fall and winter, remaining mostly inactive from December to mid March.
California Treefrogs and tadpoles rely on cryptic coloring to hide from predators. When disturbed, they jump into water, returning to the shore very quickly.
Mark and recapture studies have shown that some females are found in the same location each year. Males exhibit aggressive territorial behavior towards other males during the breeding season.

Diet

Eats insects, spiders, centipedes and other invertebrates. Typical of most frogs, the prey is located by vision, then a large sticky tongue is used to catch the prey and bring it into the mouth to eat. Tadpoles feed on organic detritus and plant material.

Reproduction and Young

Reproduction is aquatic. Fertilization is external. Mating and egg-laying occurs from early February to early October after the high-flow from seasonal storms starts to decrease.

Adults appear to be reproductively mature at two years. Males make an advertisement call from the shore, from rocks, or floating vegetation mats, and occasionally from water.

Eggs are laid singly (but tend to stick together in clusters) and are attached to twigs or other stationary debris on the bottom of quiet pools in still or slowly flowing water that is typically surrounded by rocks and boulders. (Putting the eggs under water protects them from harmful solar UV-B rays.)

Tadpoles metamorphose 40 - 75 days after hatching. For a short time, recently metamorphosed juveniles are often very common surrounding their natal pools, then they become scarce due to mortality or to their moving into other habitat.

Range

Occurs in Coastal Southern California throughout the Coast Ranges from San Luis Obispo county south to and across the Transverse Ranges east to Joshua Tree National Park, and south through the Peninsular Ranges, including the desert slopes, into northern Baja California, Mexico.

Habitat

Typically found around canyon streams and rocky washes with permanent quiet pools. Found in desert streams and palm oases, coastal streams, and up into the mountain pine belt. Coexists with P. hypochondriaca in some locations, although they rarely occur in the same location.
From sea level to 7,500 ft. (2,290 m.)

Taxonomic Notes

This species is also referred to as one of the following:
Hyla cadaverina - California Treefrog
Pseudacris cadaverina - California Chorus Frog.

Conservation Issues (Conservation Status)

No known issues, although unpublished data suggests that some populations may be experiencing declines where non-native predatory fish have become established. (Ervin in Lanoo, 2005). The effect of non-native aquatic predators - fish, caryfish, African Clawed Frogs, Bullfrogs - has not been determined.

Taxonomy
Family	Hylidae	Treefrogs
Genus	Pseudacris	Chorus Frogs
Species	cadaverina	California Treefrog
Original Description
Originally Hyla cadaverina - Cope, 1866 - Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Ser. 2, Vol. 6, No. 2, p. 84 from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz
Meaning of the Scientific Name
Pseudacris - Greek - pseudes false, deceptive and Greek - akris locust - means "false Acris" with reference to genus Acris cadaverina - Latin - cadaver a corpse and -ina having the appearance of - refers to the pale corpse-like appearance in life of some morphs of this frog from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
Alternate Names
Hyla cadaverina - California Treefrog Pseudacris cadaverina - California Chorus Frog
Related or Similar California Frogs
Pseudacris hypochondriaca - Baja CaliforniaTreefrog
More Information and References
Natureserve Explorer California Dept. of Fish and Game AmphibiaWeb Stebbins, Robert C., and McGinnis, Samuel M. Field Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles of California: Revised Edition (California Natural History Guides) University of California Press, 2012. Stebbins, Robert C. California Amphibians and Reptiles. The University of California Press, 1972. Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003. Behler, John L., and F. Wayne King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, 1992. Powell, Robert., Joseph T. Collins, and Errol D. Hooper Jr. A Key to Amphibians and Reptiles of the Continental United States and Canada. The University Press of Kansas, 1998. Bartlett, R. D. & Patricia P. Bartlett. Guide and Reference to the Amphibians of Western North America (North of Mexico) and Hawaii. University Press of Florida, 2009. Elliott, Lang, Carl Gerhardt, and Carlos Davidson. Frogs and Toads of North America, a Comprehensive Guide to their Identification, Behavior, and Calls. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. Lannoo, Michael (Editor). Amphibian Declines: The Conservation Status of United States Species. University of California Press, June 2005. Wright, Anna. Handbook of Frogs and Toads of the United States and Canada. Cornell University Press, 1949. Davidson, Carlos. Booklet to the CD Frog and Toad Calls of the Pacific Coast - Vanishing Voices. Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, 1995.

Conservation Status
The following status listings come from the Special Animals List which is published by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. This frog is not included on the Special Animals List, meaning there are no significant conservation concerns for it in California according to the Dept. of Fish and Game.
Organization	Status Listing
U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA)
California Endangered Species Act (CESA)
California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Bureau of Land Management
USDA Forest Service
Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks
World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List

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