Ornate chorus frog

Ornate chorus frog
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Amphibia
Order:	Anura
Family:	Hylidae
Genus:	Pseudacris
Species:	P. ornata
Binomial name
Pseudacris ornata (Holbrook, 1836)
Synonyms[2]
Rana ornata Holbrook, 1836 Cystignathus ornatus — Holbrook, 1842 Chorophilus ornatus — LeConte, 1855 Pseudacris ornata — Stejneger & Barbour, 1917

The ornate chorus frog (Pseudacris ornata) is a species of chorus frog endemic to the Southeastern United States.

Description[]

It is 25–38 mm (1–1.5 in) in head-body length. Its color varies depending on locale: some are green, others red or brown. It typically has a defined but broken stripe or spots leading from the nose down the side. It has a pure white belly, and usually has yellow spots located in front of the hind legs.

Habitat[]

Most commonly found in the Southern coastal plain, they live in longleaf pine flatwoods.

Behavior[]

These chorus frogs are nocturnal and are rarely seen, except during mating season.

Taxonomy[]

The ornate chorus frog (Pseudacris ornata) was named and classified by American herpetologist John Edwards Holbrook in 1836.

Etymology[]

The name of the genus, Pseudacris, comes from the Greek pseudes (false) and akris (locust), probably a reference to the repeated rasping trill of most chorus frogs, which is similar to that of the insect. The specific name, ornata, is the feminine form of the Latin adjective, ornatus (decorated).

References[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pseudacris ornata (Ornate chorus frog).