Chantaburi Warted Treefrog

Fascinating facts about the Chantaburi Warted Treefrog

• Four countries, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, share the home range of this treefrog, showing how a single species can thread through diverse cultural landscapes. Its presence across borders highlights the need for regional cooperation to protect shared wildlife.
• From sea level up to 1,500 m, the frog lives in everything from lowland rainforests to mist-cloaked mountains.
• The frog lays its eggs in tiny tree-hole pools that collect rainwater, turning a simple hole into a nursery. The tadpoles then munch on organic debris in tannin-rich water, turning what looks like swampy soup into a food source.
• Scientists have noticed that notches carved into nearby trees to collect resin actually give the frogs extra breeding sites, boosting their local numbers. This accidental partnership shows how human forest use can sometimes create hidden benefits for wildlife.
• Although the IUCN lists the species as Least Concern, logging, agricultural expansion, and illegal safrole-oil tree harvesting threaten its forest homes. Its survival in protected areas like Central Cardamoms, Phnom Samkos and Khao Soi Daow underscores why safeguarded lands matter most.

At a glance

About the Chantaburi Warted Treefrog

Theloderma stellatum, known by many names including Taylor's bug-eyed frog and Chantaburi bug-eyed tree frog, is a small, arboreal amphibian with purple-spotted, warty skin and large eyes. Its cryptic coloration blends with the moss-laden bark of subtropical and tropical moist lowland forests, as well as the periodically flooded lowland and montane woods that stretch from sea level up to 1,500 meters across Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. The species deposits eggs in rain-filled cavities of hollow trees; the tadpoles feed on organic detritus in tannin-rich water. Resin-collecting notches on host trees increase the number of suitable breeding sites by retaining additional rainwater, effectively boosting the frog’s carrying capacity.

More other animals to discover

Browse Feravox