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A tree frog is any frog that spends a major portion of its lifespan in trees, known as an arboreal state. Two lineages of frogs among the Neobatrachia have given rise to tree frogs even though they are not closely related to each other. Many millions of years of convergent evolution, resulting in almost identical habitats and ecologies between the two families, have resulted in species that strongly resemble one another. In fact, they are so similar as regards their ecological niche that where one group occurs, the other is almost always absent. Their present-day distribution indicates that the last common ancestor of the two tree frog groups lived long before the extinction of the dinosaurs.
As the name implies, these frogs are typically found 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.
The back color of tree frogs is typically a vivid green, uniformly so in many species, subtly patterned in others, altogether giving an excellent camouflage depending on the particular kind of vegetation they inhabit and the predators they hide from. Many tree frogs can change their color to a remarkable extent; when resting on bark they are usually bright brownish gray.
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" (which ironically contain some species belonging to the "true" tree frogs, Hylidae). Typical for "tree frogs" are the 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. The genus Chiromantis of the Rhacophoridae is most extreme in this respect: it can oppose two fingers to the other two, resulting in a vise-like grip.
As the name implies, these frogs are typically found 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.
The back color of tree frogs is typically a vivid green, uniformly so in many species, subtly patterned in others, altogether giving an excellent camouflage depending on the particular kind of vegetation they inhabit and the predators they hide from. Many tree frogs can change their color to a remarkable extent; when resting on bark they are usually bright brownish gray.
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" (which ironically contain some species belonging to the "true" tree frogs, Hylidae). Typical for "tree frogs" are the 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. The genus Chiromantis of the Rhacophoridae is most extreme in this respect: it can oppose two fingers to the other two, resulting in a vise-like grip.