Gray Treefrog

The Gray treefrog exhibits some adaptive features that allow it to thrive within its ecosystem. In order to avoid detection by a predator, the gray treefrog has developed a cryptic color change system, allowing the frog to blend into whatever substrate it rests upon. Change in chromatophores (pigment-bearing cells within the skin) produce color alterations in the
epidermal layer, causing the skin tone to morph to the desired hue. Granules of black, green,
orange, and yellow pigment reside within these chromatophores, and, when a color is shifted, these the pigments responsible for the previous color move from their scattered positions to denser concentrations within a skin cell. When the Gray treefrog blends from a gray to a green color, the previously scattered black pigments become concentrated into a dot as the green pigments spread out to dominate the chromatophore of the epidermal cell. Color change is stimulated in a frog by temperature change and cues acting upon the nervous and visual systems. The Gray treefrog has numerous predators, which has lead to the development of its ability to change colors in order to blend into the background. These predators include raccoons, opposums, snakes & giant waterbugs.