THE GREEN TREE FROG. 23 
colouring, which harmonises so well with the green leaves they fre- 
quent; remark their tricks and ambuscades ; follow them in their 
little hunting excursions; see them suspended in a manner which 
appears marvellous to those who are not aware of the organs that 
enable them to adhere to the smoothest bodies; and it will give as 
much pleasure to the student of Nature as can be derived from the 
plumage, habits, and flight of Birds. The croak of the Green Tree 
Frog is less sharp and more agreeable than that of the other species ; 
it can be pretty well translated by the syllables caraccarac, pro- 
ANN 
~<yin\ iN 
\ N =\ 
teen NI 
| ¥ 
\\ 
\ wes 
Fig. 6.—Green Tree Frog. 
nounced from the throat. It is principally heard in the morning and 
evening ; and when one frog commences to pipe, all the others 
imitate it. In the quiet night the voices of these little Batrachians 
can be heard a long way off. 
Toads (Bufo) are heavy and ungraceful in shape. It is difficult to 
comprehend why Nature, while it has been so kind to the Frogs 
and Tree Frogs, has stamped the Toad with so ungainly a form. 
These much despised beings are very universally distributed, and 
occupy an important place in the order of Nature. In colour they 
are usually of a livid grey, spotted with brown and yellow, and 
disfigured by a number of pustules or warts. A thick and hard skin 
covers a flat back ; its large belly always appears to be distended to 
