Pelodryadidae
163 species
Pelodryadidae, also known as Australian treefrogs (although not all members are arboreal) are a family of frogs found in the region of Australia and New Guinea, and have also been introduced to New Caledonia, Guam, New Zealand, and Vanuatu. Some authorities group them within the Hylidae as family Pelodryadinae.
The family is thought to be the sister group to the leaf frogs (Phyllomedusidae), a family of arboreal frogs known from the Neotropics. The common ancestor of both families is thought to have lived in early Cenozoic South America, with the two families diverging from one another during the Eocene. The ancestors of the Pelodryadidae likely invaded Australasia via Antarctica, which at the time was not yet frozen over, thus was hospitable for the dispersing frogs. The clade comprising both families is sister to the Hylidae, from which they diverged in the early Paleogene.
Pelodryadidae, also known as Australian treefrogs (although not all members are arboreal) are a family of frogs found in the region of Australia and New Guinea, and have also been introduced to New Caledonia, Guam, New Zealand, and Vanuatu. Some authorities group them within the Hylidae as family Pelodryadinae.
The family is thought to be the sister group to the leaf frogs (Phyllomedusidae), a family of arboreal frogs known from the Neotropics. The common ancestor of both families is thought to have lived in early Cenozoic South America, with the two families diverging from one another during the Eocene. The ancestors of the Pelodryadidae likely invaded Australasia via Antarctica, which at the time was not yet frozen over, thus was hospitable for the dispersing frogs. The clade comprising both families is sister to the Hylidae, from which they diverged in the early Paleogene.
