Hyla

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Genus of amphibians

title: "Hyla" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["hyla", "amphibian-genera", "taxa-named-by-josephus-nicolaus-laurenti"] description: "Genus of amphibians" topic_path: "general/hyla" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyla" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Genus of amphibians ::

::callout[type=note] the frog genus ::

| fossil_range = Eocene to recent | image = Laubfrosch cropped.jpg | image_caption = European tree frog, Hyla arborea | taxon = Hyla | authority = Laurenti, 1768 | subdivision_ranks = Species | subdivision = See text | synonyms =

  • Calamita Schneider, 1799
  • Calamites Schneider, 1799
  • Dendrohyas Wagler, 1830
  • Discodactylus Michahelles, 1833
  • Hyas Wagler, 1830
  • Hylanus Rafinesque, 1815
  • Hylaria Rafinesque, 1814
  • Ranetta Garsault, 1764 | synonyms_ref =

Hyla is a genus of frogs in the tree frog family Hylidae. As traditionally defined, it was a wastebasket genus with more than 300 species found in Europe, Asia, Africa, and across the Americas. After a major revision of the family, most of these have been moved to other genera so that Hyla now only contains 17 extant (living) species from Europe, northern Africa and Asia. The earliest known fossil member of this genus is †Hyla swanstoni from the Eocene of Saskatchewan, Canada, but its designation to Hyla happened before the major revision, meaning that its position needs confirmation.

The genus was established by Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti in 1768. It was named after Hylas in Greek mythology, the companion of Hercules. The name is unusual in that – though Laurenti knew that Hylas was male – the name is unambiguously treated in the feminine grammatical gender for reasons unknown. The etymology of the name is also often incorrectly given as being derived from the Greek word ὕλη (grc, "forest" or "wood").

Living species

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Hyla_arborea_var.molleri(Hello_folks).jpg" caption="''[[Hyla molleri]]''"] ::

::data[format=table]

ImageBinomial nameCommon nameDistribution
[[File:Hyla annectans (Jerdon, 1870).jpg120px]]H. annectans (Jerdon, 1870)Jerdon's tree frog
[[File:European tree frog (Hyla arborea) Extremadura.jpg120px]]H. arborea (Linnaeus, 1758)European tree frog
[[File:Rainette de Carthage.jpg120px]]H. carthaginiensis Dufresnes, Beddek, Skorinov, Fumagalli, Perrin, Crochet, and Litvinchuk, 2019Carthaginian tree frog
[[File:Hhsinchu National Tsing Hua University Butterfly Garden Chien Tzu Hao 03.jpg120px]]H. chinensis Günther, 1858Common Chinese tree frog
[[File:Hyla felixarabica01.jpeg120px]]H. felixarabica Gvoždík, Moravec, Klütsch & Kotlík, 2010Arabian tree frog
[[File:Hallowell's tree frog (Hyla hallowellii).jpg120px]]H. hallowellii Thompson, 1912Hallowell's tree frog
[[File:BennyTrapp Hyla intermedia Italien.jpg120px]]H. intermedia Boulenger, 1882Italian tree frog
[[File:Hyla japonica on leaf.JPG120px]]H. japonica Günther, 1859 (Some studies consider it as species of Dryophytes)Japanese tree frog
[[File:Mediterranean Tree Frog (Hyla meridionalis) (8329020131).jpg120px]]H. meridionalis Boettger, 1874Mediterranean tree frog
[[File:Hyla molleri 01 by-dpc.jpg120px]]H. molleri Bedriaga, 1889Moller's tree frog
[[File:K.Kalaentzis - Hyla orientalis, Rhodope.jpg120px]]H. orientalis Bedriaga, 1890Oriental tree frog
[[File:Hyla perrini Casalbeltrame.jpg120px]]H. perrini Dufresnes, Mazepa, Rodrigues, Brelsford, Litvinchuk, Sermier, Lavanchy, Betto-Colliard, Blaser, Borzée, Cavoto, Fabre, Ghali, Grossen, Horn, Leuenberger, Phillips, Saunders, Savary, Maddalena, Stöck, Dubey, Canestrelli, and Jeffries, 2018Perrin's tree frog
H. sanchiangensis Pope, 1929San Chiang tree frogChina(Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Anhui, Zhejiang, Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi)
[[File:Hyla sarda g2.jpg120px]]H. sarda (De Betta, 1853)Sardinian tree frog
[[File:Hyla savignyi02a.jpg120px]]H. savignyi Audouin, 1827Middle East tree frog
[[File:Hyla simplex.jpg120px]]H. simplex Boettger, 1901Annam tree frog
[[File:Hyla tsinlingensis(Subadult,top view).jpg120px]]H. tsinlingensis Liu and Hu in Hu, Zhao, and Liu, 1966Shensi tree frog
H. zhaopingensis Tang and Zhang, 1984Zhaoping tree frogChina.
::

Mating systems

Female choice based on male calling

The mating systems across most species of Hyla largely feature female choice based on male calling effort. The specific parameter of calling effort that is selected for can vary from species to species, however. In H. versicolor, for example, females show preference for calls of longer duration. The selection of males which have calls of longer duration has shown to only be advantageous at low densities. This suggests that preference plasticity, based on environmental context, is beneficial. Comparatively, males of H. arborea achieve a higher rate of mating success with increased chorus attendance, that is the number of nights spent calling at a given breeding site. Moreover, increased chorus attendance carries with it a higher energy expenditure and risk of predation. Therefore, it may seem intuitive that males with higher chorus attendance are less likely to survive to the next breeding season. Conversely, these males are more likely to survive. This suggests that the fitness of these males is high enough to overcome the costs associated with chorus attendance. This provides evidence for chorus attendance as an indicator of mate quality in H. arborea.

Male-male contests

Although it is studied less frequently than female choice, sexual selection influenced by male-male intrasexual competition does exist in certain species of Hyla. Males of H. versicolor produce conspicuous advertisement calls in large groups at territories known to females. This behavior, known as lekking, is common in many species of Hyla. In order to broadcast a clear acoustic communication to a female, males require distinct calling spaces within their respective leks. When males infringe upon the calling space of one another, aggressive interactions may occur. Males of H. versicolor may choose to lower costs of aggressive encounters by first assessing one another's resource holding potential. In simple terms, the resource holding potential (RHP) of an individual is its ability to win a fight. RHP can be based on a number of factors, including mass, size, weaponry, etc. In H. versicolor, the question of what determines an individual's RHP still stands. Aggressive interactions of this species are hard to observe within natural environments, because they occur briefly and infrequently. Research has suggested that RHP in this species is not based on body size, however these findings were not based on in situ observations, but instead on the findings of a manipulated experiment.

Indirect selection

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/HylaArborea-CallingMale.jpg" caption="A calling ''H. arborea'' male with a distended vocal sac."] ::

]] In terms of sexual selection, indirect selection refers to the selection of a specific trait based on its genetic correlation to overall fitness. H. arborea is a nocturnal species which depends on calling by males for female mate choice. In addition to its ability to detect acoustic communications, H. arborea, as well as most other Anuran species, possess specialized visual systems that function particularly well in low light. This visual system allows for detection of observable male traits that could factor into female mate choice. Research has shown that H. arborea females have a preference for males with more conspicuous vocal sac coloration. It is postulated that this preference may assist in localization and detection of males by searching females. However, vocal sac pigmentation is dictated by carotenoid levels, which must be ingested through food intake. Thus, the presence of conspicuous vocal sac coloration could in turn signal higher male foraging ability and fitness.

References

References

  1. {{GBIF
  2. {{aut. Faivovich, J.; Haddad, C.F.B.; Garcia, P.C.A.; Frost, D.R.; Campbell, J.A.; Wheeler, W.C., 2005: Systematic Review of the Frog Family Hylidae, with Special Reference to Hylinae: Phylogenetic Analysis and Taxonomic Revision. ''Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History'', Num. '''294''', pp.1-240. (http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/bitstream/2246/462/1/B294.pdf)
  3. "Fossilworks: Hyla".
  4. Charles W. Myers & Richard B. Stothers. (2006). "The myth of Hylas revisited: the frog name ''Hyla'' and other commentary on ''Specimen medicum'' (1768) of J. N. Laurenti, the "father of herpetology"". Archives of Natural History.
  5. {{OED. hyla It gives the 'wood' etymology.
  6. (2025-02-20). "Genetic and morphological variation analyses of Dryophytes japonicus (Anura, Hylidae) with description of a new species from northeastern Japan". Zootaxa.
  7. (1987). "Mating behaviour and male mating success in the green treefrog". Animal Behaviour.
  8. (2002-01-01). "The vocal behaviour of male European treefrogs (''Hyla arborea''): implications for inter-and intrasexual selection". Behaviour.
  9. Gerhardt, H. Carl. (1991). "Female mate choice in treefrogs: static and dynamic acoustic criteria". Animal Behaviour.
  10. (1992). "Female choice and selection on male calling behaviour in the grey treefrog Hyla versicolor". Animal Behaviour.
  11. (2005). "Sexual selection in the lek-breeding European treefrog: body size, chorus attendance, random mating and good genes". Animal Behaviour.
  12. Fellers, Gary M.. (1979). "Aggression, territoriality, and mating behaviour in North American treefrogs". Animal Behaviour.
  13. (2011). "The role of body size on the outcome, escalation and duration of contests in the grey treefrog, Hyla versicolor". Animal Behaviour.
  14. (2009-07-07). "The role of nocturnal vision in mate choice: females prefer conspicuous males in the European tree frog (Hyla arborea)". Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences.

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