Meet the Green Tree Frog

A beautifully colored animal with a benign, pleasant disposition, hardy constitution, and healthy appetite, the green tree frog (Hyla cinerea) is one of the most common pet frogs and makes an excellent pet for both novice and expert keepers.

Adult green tree frogs measure slightly over 2" (5 cm) in length, though many are smaller. They’re predominantly bright green in color but are capable of changing to a darker brown or olive green, depending on the environmental conditions. Most also have a cream or yellow stripe that runs from the mouth down both flanks.

An albino variety of green tree frog is available occasionally. This mutation has pale-yellow to ghostly white skin and pink eyes.

The green tree frog is native to the southeastern United States. It is commonly found around areas of water such as swamps, marshes, slow-moving streams, lakesides, and even cattle watering troughs. The leaves of emergent vegetation (plants that are rooted underwater but grow above the water’s surface) serve as favorite perches and resting spots during the day.

Like all tree frogs, the green tree frog’s toes have evolved into broad, flat, sticky pads that can cling to virtually any surface. These modified toes—coupled with the animal’s dexterous limbs and lightweight body—allow the frog to climb high into treetops and to jump from leaf to leaf without falling. It also has long, powerful hind legs that help it jump great distances. (When startled or in pursuit of prey, a green tree frog can leap over 10 times its own body length.)

A green tree frog’s coloration also protects it from predators in the wild. Its bright-green back prevents predatory birds from seeing it among plant life, and its pale underside helps the frog blend in with the understory (the layer of vegetation between the ground and the forest canopy). Snakes, perched birds, weasels, and other ground-going predators will often overlook a green tree frog when glancing up at it from the forest floor.

Green tree frogs are nocturnal animals that are primarily active in the hours from twilight to well after midnight, but they return to the safety of the forest canopy several hours before dawn. Because of their nocturnal nature, they have no trouble seeing in the dark and can navigate and hunt with ease during the night.

As pets, though, green tree frogs are rarely afraid to present themselves, whether during the day or the evening. They are highly visible and attractive terrarium inhabitants.

Green tree frogs are highly vocal and have a unique system of trills and calls that they use to communicate with other tree frogs—and which you are likely to hear regularly from your frog. These vocalizations become more raucous according to certain weather conditions: when a low-pressure front moves through the area, for example, green tree frogs will vocalize loudly and frequently during the night.

Under normal circumstances, a green tree frog may sing or chorus in the company of others of its kind. When a predator draws near, however, the frogs nearest to it fall silent. This sudden silence acts as a warning to all nearby green tree frogs that danger is at hand. When the predator has moved on, the frogs will resume their chorusing.

Green tree frogs make excellent pet amphibians. They are undemanding, odorless (provided you perform regular cleaning of their enclosure), inexpensive, and among the hardiest of amphibians. However, green tree frogs and most amphibians are not pets in the same way that cats and dogs are. They are too small to really handle, and their skin secretions may irritate human skin. They are best thought of as interesting animals to observe and care for rather than as pets that you can cuddle or play with.

Because of the green tree frog’s benevolent disposition and communal nature, you can keep pairs, trios, or even larger colonies of this frog, depending on how much time and space you can dedicate to your pets.