The White's tree frog's scientific name is Litoria caerulea. Frogs from the genus litoria are members of the Pelodryadinae, a subfamily of a large family of tree frogs called the Hylidae. The name "White's tree frog" refers to the name of the man who first described the species. They are also known as a variety of common names such as Dumpy tree frog, Smiling tree frog, Australian Green tree frog of Indonesian dumpy tree frog.

They originate from Northern and Eastern Australia, Indonesia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Timor.They can vary in color greatly from a light lime green, jade green, blue green, olive green to a reddish or purplish brown, and a blue phase offers specimens which range from a turquoise blue to a deep electric blue. These color variations are related to their origination. The Australian natives exhibit bright greens, blue greens, and the blue phases of turquoise and deep blue. The Indonesian natives tend to be a duller green, green brown, olive green or reddish brown. They both have creamy white bellies and will often have white freckles on their backs and heads. While extreme changes in color, for example a frog who is always mostly green turning and staying a dark brown, can indicate stress or illness, changing shades of colors is a normal and natural process for these frogs. Part of these variations in color are an indicator of mood changes, and part of them are a means of camoflauge

White's are nocturnal creatures so they sleep during the day and come out after dark to hunt for food and soak in the water. When they are not in a hurry, they walk leisurely hand over hand which is quite an endearing trait.

They are heavy-bodied frogs, one of only a few species that can become clinically obese. They are very voracious eaters and will eat anything they can fit into their mouths - including other smaller frogs. So be sure tank mates are of the same approximate size.

They will reach an average size of 4 inches with a range of 3&1/2 to 5 inches in length, snout to vent. Males are usually smaller than females and have looser skin on their throats. Upon reaching sexual maturity at approximately 1 year of age, males will begin to call. The call starts out quietly and quickly builds to a constant RrrAWK!, RrrAWK!, RrrAWK! that lasts for up to 20 seconds. Females will only make a short brief response call to a male or a distress call when annoyed by being handled or another frog sitting on them.

The average life span for a White's tree frog in captivity is 10+ years. The longest living captive White's is 21 years old.

Quarintine