User:Bergermyster/sandbox/Hyla orientalis

The Eastern Tree Frog ("Hyla orientalis") is a species of amphibians in the family Hylidae. Other regional names include the Shelkovnikov's Tree Frog, the Caucasian Tree Frog, and the Oriental Tree Frog.

Taxonomy
It was removed from its synonymy with "Hyla arborea" by Stöck, Dubey, Klütsch, Litvinchuk, Scheidt and Perrin in 2008, in which it had been placed by Boulenger in 1998.

Description
The eastern tree frog is a small arboreal species that spends the majority of its time in the trees and under leaves. It is nocturnal in nature. Water is only sought during the breeding season, in which clean, deep, heavily vegetated water is preferred. The larvae is aquatic.

The pupils are horizontal, and it is characterized by its dark throat sac, bright green back (although sometimes gray or yellow-ish in nature) and white belly. There is a dark line in front of the eyes that extends across the membrane to the groin and side of the body.

Distribution and Habitat
This species can be found from northeastern Europe to Asia Minor, including Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, southern Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Iran. Its presence is uncertain in Greece.

Populations in both lowland and highland areas have been studied, although the preferred habitat is that of temperate oceanic (submediterrenean) (areas with no dry of frost periods). They are most active from early May to late September.

In the higher altitudes, hibernation periods may be longer. This could affect the energy expenditure and prevent a greater growth in body size. Additionally, females tend to be larger than males.

Females have bee shown to live to 8 years, males 7, although in lowland areas the expectancy has been seen to be around 5 years for both sexes. The age of maturity for females can range from 2-3 years, and 1-2 for the males depending on the altitude.

Conservation Status
The umbrella species "Hyla aborea" is listed as least concern on the IUCN Red List, and includes the "Hyla orientalis" species in this assessment. Due to its large distribution, it is considered this, but future studies are needed to characterize the status of the eastern tree frog alone. However, the populations are decreasing due to habitat issues and susceptibility to environmental changes.