Polypedates maculatus
Silhouette: Jose Carlos Arenas-Monroy · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
Polypedates maculatus, the Indian tree frog, or Chunam tree frog, is a common species of tree frog found in South Asia. It was described by John Edward Gray in 1830. Although now considered as a separate species again, for a time, the Himalayan tree frog was considered as a subspecies of the Indian tree frog (as P. m. himalayensis). Polypedates leucomystax, a very similar species, was formerly included in P. maculatus.
These frogs measure about 7–8 cm in body length. They are mostly brownish, yellowish, greyish, or whitish above, with darker spots or markings, rarely with an hourglass-shaped figure on the back of the head and the front of the back. The loreal and temporal regions are dark; there is a light line on the upper lip. The hind side of the thighs has round, yellow spots, which are usually separated by a dark-brown or purplish network. The skin is smooth above, and granulated on the belly and under the thighs; a fold extends from the eye to the shoulder. Males have internal vocal sacs.
The vomerine teeth are arranged in two more or less oblique series between the choanae or commencing close to the inner front edge of the latter. The skin of head is free;... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wilpattu National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 2 | Yala National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 3 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 4 | Udawalawe National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Chunam Tree Frog sighting in Chennai on a given day, based on 63 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 3rd most-seen of the 7 amphibians we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Chunam Tree Frog in Chennai on a given day, against about 10% in August, the lowest month. That is one of Chennai's driest months, with about 5 mm of rain against 290 mm in November.
Between 7 and 10 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Chunam Tree Frog sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
5th of 15
Of the 15 cities where we can rate Chunam Tree Frog sightings, Chennai ranks 5th at about 30%. The best odds are in Ponnani (India, about 40%), Thrissur (India, about 30%) and Raipur (India, about 30%).
Same order: Anura
The closest relatives of the Chunam Tree Frog that you can see in Chennai (order Anura, Frogs and Toads) are Common Indian Toad (about 30%), Sri Lankan Bullfrog (about 30%) and White-bellied pug-snout frog (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Chunam Tree Frog is recorded against all the amphibians logged in Chennai (63 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
