WHITE-LIPPED TREE FROG

Voice and behaviour

• Call: A resonant, barking “crawk” or rolling croak, spaced every few seconds, heard on humid nights and after summer storms.
• Nocturnal and arboreal: by day they rest in cool, shaded spots—banana leaves, palm sheaths, verandas; by night they hunt.
• Diet: Mostly large insects—moths, beetles, crickets, roaches—and sometimes other small invertebrates.
• Movement: Broad, deliberate climbs using those adhesive pads; powerful jumps when startled.

Close your eyes and you can almost feel the damp warmth of the rainforest and hear the rhythm of the call, like a soft drumbeat coming from the canopy.

Range and habitat

• Australia: Primarily the Wet Tropics of north-eastern Queensland—from roughly the Townsville region north through the rainforest belt to Cape York and the Torres Strait islands.
• Also widespread across New Guinea and nearby islands.
• Habitats include lowland rainforest, monsoon forest, mangroves, and human-modified areas such as gardens—provided there is reliable moisture and freshwater for breeding.

Life cycle

• Breeding season: Mostly the wet season (summer), triggered by heavy rain.
• Eggs: Laid as a floating film or scattered clumps in still or slow-moving water—ponds, dams, flooded ditches.
• Tadpoles: Large, often golden-brown with darker mottling; they graze on algae and biofilm.
• Metamorphosis: From egg to frog can take several weeks to a few months, depending on temperature and water quality.
• Young frogs: Tiny green jewels that climb into vegetation soon after their tails are absorbed.

Ecology and role in the ecosystem

• Predators include snakes, birds, large spiders, and monitors; tadpoles are preyed upon by fish and aquatic invertebrates.
• As voracious insect-eaters, they help regulate insect populations.
• Sensitive skin makes them living indicators of water and habitat quality—when they thrive, the local wetlands are usually healthy.

Conservation notes

• Global status is Least Concern, but local pressures matter:
  • Loss and fragmentation of rainforest and wetlands
  • Road mortality on warm, wet nights
  • Disease risk from chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis)
  • Climate extremes that alter breeding wetlands
• Simple actions help:
  • Create a fish-free backyard pond with leaf litter, gentle ramps, and native plants.
  • Avoid pesticides and herbicides; use frog-friendly garden practices.
  • Keep domestic cats indoors at night, particularly in the wet season.
  • Never relocate frogs between properties or waterways—this spreads disease and disrupts local genetics.
  • If you must handle a frog (ideally, do not), wet, clean hands and minimal contact reduce stress and skin damage.

How to see one (ethically)

• Look and listen on warm, humid nights after rain in coastal north Queensland.
• Scan eye-level to several metres up—palm and banana leaves, fence lines, window ledges near outdoor lights.
• Use a dim torch and observe quietly; bright lights and handling can stress amphibians.

Frequently confused with

• Australian green tree frog : Smaller on average, lacks the crisp white lip stripe, broader distribution into drier regions, softer “wark… wark” call.
• White-lipped is mostly a tropical species in Australia.

Quick facts to remember

• The world’s largest tree frog lives right in Australia’s Wet Tropics.
• That neat white stripe along the lip is the giveaway.
• It calls like a small dog after summer rain.
• Healthy frogs often mean healthy water.

The White-lipped tree frog is more than a rainforest resident—it is a warm, living thread in the fabric of tropical nights. Protect the wetlands, and you protect the voice that rises after the rain, calling life back to the forest.