Wotjulum Frog

Litoria watjulumensis

A medium-sized elongate frog with a long pointed head and long limbs. The fingers are long and unwebbed while the toes are fully webbed; both have large terminal discs. Variable in colour and pattern: usually uniform pale brown on the back, but sometimes with blotches of darker grey or brown. A broad dark stripe runs from the snout to the forearms on each side of the head, and the sides are often a bright yellow. Females can be much larger than males - maximum sizes 7 cm vs. 4 cm.

Breeding

Occurs in slow-flowing sections of rocky creeks or temporary pools.

Call

A very complex series of chuckles, clicks and rattles that can sound like an excited chicken. A full call lasts for about 30 seconds. Males begin to call in earnest well after midnight and continue past dawn (resulting in a dawn chorus of bird and frog calls).

Eggs

From 30-200 eggs are laid in clumps in temporary pools.

Tadpoles

Mottled brown attaining a size of about 4 cm. Larval period is long - up to 2 months.

Other Notes

Named after the Wotjulum Aboriginal community in WA (although the scientific name was misspelt).