Amazon milk frog

Trachycephalus resinifictrix

The Amazon milk frog is a tree frog of Neotropical forest and freshwater habitats. It is a solitary nocturnal carnivore.

Key facts

Amazon milk frog (Trachycephalus resinifictrix) is a carnivore animal classified as Amphibian · Anura · Hylidae.
Primary habitats are forest · freshwater, with a range across Neotropical.
Activity is nocturnal, sociality is solitary, and conservation status is LC (Least Concern).
The Amazon milk frog is a tree frog of Neotropical forest and freshwater habitats.
It lives in humid Amazonian forest, using tree holes and water-filled cavities.
Typical lifespan: 4-15 years

Habitat range map

Native rangeOccasional / Transient

Map: Ecoregions 2017 © RESOLVE (CC BY 4.0) · Natural Earth (PD)

It lives in humid Amazonian forest, using tree holes and water-filled cavities. Standing water in trees is important for breeding.

Body length is about 6-10 cm and weight about 10-50 g. The gray-blue to greenish body has dark bands and can release a white defensive secretion.

It is nocturnal and solitary. By day it rests in arboreal shelters, then climbs branches and trunks at night to hunt.

It is carnivorous, eating insects and other small invertebrates. A sticky tongue captures nearby prey.

Eggs are laid in water-filled tree holes or similar pools. Tadpoles develop there, while males call from breeding sites.

Its conservation status is LC. The name milk frog refers to the pale defensive secretion released from the skin.