Native Arkansas Tree Frog

[carsona246]

Hey everyone,
I posted in the intro section, but thought this post might be more prevalent here. My fiance found a tree frog in her work parking lot, and picked it up because it didn't look so good. I've gotten it into a 20 high with dechlorinated water, and he seems to be perking up a bit. I was hoping to get some info on whether he was truly a native tree frog because he is pretty green. I've got some terrible cell phone pictures, and will be attempting to get some more. At the moment he is basically in a bare tank with a small bowl of water, a styrofoam cup for shelter and a few twigs. I bought crickets for him to eat. I was hoping to get an ID on him. I'm also trying to decide if I should keep him, or release him into the wild. I've never kept a tree frog before, and do not want to keep a wild one if it might be considered unethical or harm him in any way. If it's not a native species I'll most likely keep it.
When we first got him he was not moving at all, and apparently did not move when picked up by a co-worker. I'm not sure if his hands are supposed to be dark or not, but it was a hot day, so the sidewalk must have been pretty hot for him. He seems a lot more active now, and has been climbing up the glass whenver we walk in the room and moves his head to look at us. I'm assuming that's a good sign.
Here's a shot of him in the styrofoam cup he was caught in


And here's a shot of him in the 20 high


I hope these are good enough, I would love tips/advice on whether you think I should keep him or release him. Also an ID would be fantastic if someone can, I know these are not the best pictures, I'll work on getting more.

[carsona246]

sorry for all the typing.
Got some better pictures, and watched him eat a cricket, which was awesome.

this is my only camera, so I hope they're ok

[carsona246]

Been doing a bit of research and would love some input on a tank if I were to keep him. I'm considering tearing down my tank with pygmy cories and doing a half water half wood/rock setup that has both fish and the tree frog. Would this be acceptable for the tree frog? I keep a plant filter on my tanks, so I was thinking I could just take out the pothos/peace lilly in the cory tank and have their roots submerged in the water while using the plants as land decoration.
Will the tree frog have enough room in a 20H if it's half filled with water? I'm assuming he's a american green tree frog.

[UncleChester]

It does look like an American Green Treefrog, Hyla cinerea, but you also have the similar looking but rarer Squirrel Treefrog, Hyla squirella, in Arkansas (Herps of Arkansas: Frogs).

Check your local laws about the legality of keeping it. Generally speaking, pulling adults out of the wild breeding population is not ideal- it removes them from the breeding population (not a major concern in small amounts from a thriving species) and it's harder for them to adapt to life in captivity. It sounds like it was in rough shape and that's great you helped it recover! I'd suggest letting it go if it seems to be healthy now, and if you're interested in keeping a frog aim towards collecting a younger one (even at the egg/tadpole stage next spring) once you had a permanent habitat ready to go. But it's up to you, probably most if not all of the Hyla cinerea​ found in pet stores for sale were wild caught.

Care for either is mostly the same as a Gray treefrog- Frog Forum - Gray Tree Frog Care and Breeding (Grays are much more cold tolerant though!). The higher the tank the better, but a 20H would be large enough. I've no experience housing them with fish, and personally would just set up a dedicated treefrog tank as more tanks means more fun.

[carsona246]

I did some research,and I'm fairly positive it is legal to keep both species in Arkansas. There was only one species of frog that was illegal to keep, and it was not either the squirrel or the green tree frog. I really appreciate the care sheet, which for some reason I had not found by now.
I still haven't decided whether I"m going to keep it yet or not. I've never thought about keeping frogs before, but I'm starting to get pretty interested. The idea of setting up a paludarium(I think that's the right word) is also fairly appealing to me. I do prefer the appearance of Grays, but I also like the idea of keeping a native species, and honestly I have no idea where to find a gray treefrog.
Has anyone set one this type of habitat for a green tree frog before?
Would a running park be a good spot to release him if I do? There's a nice creek and a lot of trees. Our backyard is also frequented by mosquito's, so if that would be as good a spot as any that would be nice.

[UncleChester]

I do prefer the appearance of Grays, but I also like the idea of keeping a native species, and honestly I have no idea where to find a gray treefrog.

Grays are native where you are, both species of them. They're dead easy to find in the spring during their breeding periods. Familiarize yourself with their calls then drive around areas with ponds or swamps on a warm, humid or wet spring evening with your windows down listening for them. Return to the ponds a few days after some major chorusing and collect eggs or return in a couple of weeks for tadpoles.

Has anyone set one this type of habitat for a green tree frog before?

They aren't likely to make much use of a major water feature. My Hyla cinerea is almost never on the ground, and my Hyla versicolors also rarely go down. The flipside of that is you can pretty much put what you want down on the ground with the only drawback of a higher number of crickets drowning in a larger water system.

Would a running park be a good spot to release him if I do? There's a nice creek and a lot of trees. Our backyard is also frequented by mosquito's, so if that would be as good a spot as any that would be nice.

Anywhere they are found naturally would work. If there's a swamp or pond nearby where you found it with lots of bushes or tress, that would probably be ideal.