Yellow TreefrogDendropsophus microcephalus

Dendopsophus microcephalus
Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico

 

The Yellow Treefrog (Dendropsophus microcephalus) is a common small hylid found from southern Mexico all the way down into northern South America and even on the Atlantic Coast of Brazil. Throughout their range, these cute little frogs are found in lowland tropical areas including flooded grasslands, pastures and other disturbed habitats.  It have found them in Mexico and Costa Rica calling from flooded roadside ditches.

They are generally pale yellowish with some brown markings on the back that may form a net-like pattern in some individuals.

Their call is an insect like "crick, crick" sound. When first heard, it seems rather "unfrog-like".  These Yellow Treefrogs were recorded in the grasslands east of Caño Negro, Costa Rica.

 
Yellow Treefrog from Caño Negro, Costa Rica

I recorded some more Yellow Treefrogs in the Tocumen Marshes of Central Panama in 2024.   I thought at first they were a species of Scinax, but they were identified as Yellow Treefrogs by another iNaturalist user (who is great with Central American Frogs!).   In that recording, I noticed that the call of this species seems to be a couple of short "crick" calls followed by a series of them in rapid succession.   Here's the Panamanian D. microcephalus calling.

 

Yellow Treefrogs from Tocumen, Panama.

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© Chris Harrison