Natal Forest Tree Frog

Natal Forest Tree Frog

Leptopelis natalensis

Silhouette: Maija Karala · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR Endemic
Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible
at Durban

In 3 days ~70% in a week ~90%

204 Verified sightings at Durban
97 In 1 park From 2019 to 2026
January Best month
🌅 Crepuscular When it's spotted

About the Natal Forest Tree Frog

The Natal forest tree frog (Leptopelis natalensis) is a species of frog in the family Arthroleptidae, subfamily Leptopelinae, and is endemic to the eastern coastal area of South Africa. A typical tree frog, it has large eyes and a broad mouth. Its colouration is highly variable: Some may be bright green, others cream coloured, and some may be cream with olive-green blotches.

Its natural habitats are temperate forests, temperate shrubland, subtropical forests, swamps, intermittent freshwater marshes, and rural gardens. It is threatened by habitat loss. These frogs usually live in the foliage and branches of forest trees. They lay eggs on banks of ponds and quiet streams, or on broad leaves near the water's edge. The tadpoles hatch and drop into the water where they grow and develop into frogs. Its call is somewhat akin to "bwee YACK-yack". The first part of the call being described as "soft buzzing".

Forest tree frog Structured guide to the species in southern Africa Wikipedia →

Sounds

Recording0:18

South Africa · 2023

© Joplo · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Recording0:12

South Africa · 2024

© Luke Lerotholi · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Recording0:18

South Africa · 2019

© Peter Vos · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~30%

More parks will be added in future updates.

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Durban 🇿🇦 South Africa
~30%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 San Antonio Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Natal Forest Tree Frog in Durban?

Possible

About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Natal Forest Tree Frog sighting in Durban on a given day, based on 204 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the most-seen of the 13 amphibians we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Natal Forest Tree Frog in Durban?

January and March–April

In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Natal Forest Tree Frog in Durban on a given day, against about 10% in August, the lowest month.

What time of day is best to see a Natal Forest Tree Frog?

Between 6 and 9 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Natal Forest Tree Frog sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.

Where else can you see a Natal Forest Tree Frog?

Only Durban, in our data

Durban is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Natal Forest Tree Frog sightings: about 30% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.

Where does the Natal Forest Tree Frog sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Natal Forest Tree Frog is recorded against all the amphibians logged in Durban (204 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.

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