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Some federal rules apply

Black-eyed leaf frog

Agalychnis moreletii

Also known as Morelet's Treefrog, Morelet’s tree frog

Amphibians › Frogs and toads (Anura) › Phyllomedusidae (Leaf and monkey frogs)

Morelet's tree frog (Agalychnis moreletii), also known as black-eyed leaf frog and popeye hyla, is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae.

Pet trade

Experience: Intermediate

Black-eyed leaf frog — Photo: Eli Greenbaum, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons

Photo: Eli Greenbaum, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons

FamilyLeaf and monkey frogs

Kept byPet trade

HabitatMorelet's tree frog primarily inhabits moist

Care guide

Group care guide

Leaf and monkey frogs

Applies to most species in this group. Habitat: Rainforest canopy (waxy monkey frogs in drier forest). Individual species can differ, so compare with the species numbers above and the linked sources.

Housing & setup

Tall, planted enclosures with broad leaves for sleeping; nightly misting.
Waxy monkey frogs need drier, warmer setups with more ventilation.

Sources 115 116

Climate & lighting

Warm side / daytime	75–82°F
Cool side	68–72°F
Humidity	60–80%

UVB: Low-level UVB recommended.

Sources 115 116

Diet

Crickets and moths; they hunt from perches.

Sources 115 116

Health watch

Dehydration and infections; delicate and best not handled.

Sources 115 116

Understanding the animal

About this animal

It is found in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, freshwater marshes, and intermittent freshwater marshes.

Quoted from the Wikipedia article “Morelet's tree frog” (CC BY-SA 4.0) 174

In the wild

Quoted from the matching sections of reputable sources for this exact species. Specialist databases are used first; Wikipedia (community-edited, CC BY-SA 4.0) only fills gaps. Other sources are short credited quotes.

Overview	Morelet's tree frog (Agalychnis moreletii), also known as black-eyed leaf frog and popeye hyla, is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is found in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, freshwater marshes, and intermittent freshwater marshes. — Wikipedia (community-edited)
Where it lives	Morelet's tree frog primarily inhabits moist, subtropical lowland forests, montane or cloud forests, or wetland habitats with sufficient tree cover. The species is found in the middle of Central America, from southern Mexico to NW Honduras, as well as Belize, El Salvador and Guatemala. — Wikipedia (community-edited)
Reproduction	They have an extended breeding season during the summer months. When choosing a mate, the females tend to search for the males with the best sounding mating call. The males whose mating calls are the longest and have the most frequent pulses in pitch are the ones who get chosen by the females. — Wikipedia (community-edited)
Appearance and size	Physically, Morelet's tree frog has a similar form to the related red-eyed tree frog (A. callidryas), with which its range overlaps in areas, albeit slightly smaller, and with a more uniformly-green body, dark black eyes, and a red or pink underbelly. — Wikipedia (community-edited)
Conservation	Morelet's tree frog are abundant within its range and are kept as pets internationally. Industry and agriculture are thought to be the main causes of lowland montane forest destruction. The population of Morelet's tree frogs are also being affected due to a disease called Chytridiomycosis, which is an infectious disease that kills amphibians. — Wikipedia (community-edited)

Native climate (measured)

Warm-season highs	about 87°F (up to 91°F in the hottest sampled areas)
Cool-season lows	about 57°F (down to 51°F in the coldest sampled areas)
Average temperature	65–77°F across sampled records
Relative humidity	72–79% on average (driest month about 66%)
Rainfall	about 1777 mm a year

Measured at 255 wild occurrence records sampled against WorldClim 2.1 climate data (1970–2000 averages). Air conditions in the range are ecological context, not enclosure settings: microhabitats such as burrows, leaf litter or basking rocks can be cooler, warmer or more humid.

Data and studies

Researched care notes

Findings checked against veterinary, zoo, welfare, keeper and peer-reviewed sources. Air, basking-surface and water temperatures are kept separate, and where sources disagree both are shown. “Study” notes report what a paper measured, not a universal rule.

Black-Eyed Leaf Frog (species)

General maintenance is described around 20–24°C, alongside a cooler seasonal UV-Tool schedule. Preserve the different contexts rather than averaging them. Confidence: LOW.¹
Daytime RH is described around 50–70%, with evening increases toward 80–100%, ventilation, and clean water. This is a changing cycle, not continuous saturation.¹
Gut-load suitable insects and limit their time in the enclosure to reduce nutritional deterioration and biting risk.¹

Black-eyed leaf frog, Agalychnis moreletii

Veterinary & husbandry research

Tagging frogs with passive integrated transponders causes disruption of the cutaneous bacterial community and proliferation of opportunistic fungi Antwis RE et al., Applied and environmental microbiology 2014

Peer-reviewed papers that mention this species alongside captivity, zoos, veterinary care or aquaculture. Some cover several species or mention it only in passing, so check the abstract. 170

Federal legal snapshot

Some federal rules apply

CITES Appendix II. Appendix II: international trade needs CITES export permits. CITES doesn't restrict buying a captive-bred animal within the U.S.; keep your purchase records. 173 186

State law decides most of it. Each state sets its own permits and bans for exotic, native, venomous and dangerous animals, and cities and counties can be stricter. Find your state agency →

Not covered by the Animal Welfare Act

The Act only covers warm-blooded animals. Reptiles, amphibians, fish and invertebrates have no federal care standards, even at licensed facilities; state and local rules may still apply.

Kept in captivity?

Every species on this site needs evidence that people actually keep it. For this one:

Included in our hand-checked list of animals kept as pets, livestock or in zoos
7 iNaturalist observations of captive animals

Sources for this sheet

Species+ (UNEP-WCMC and the CITES Secretariat) Zoo, university or veterinaryThe official database of species listed under CITES.
USFWS International Affairs: CITES Zoo, university or veterinaryFederal agency that issues CITES permits.
Merck Veterinary Manual: Environment and husbandry for amphibians Zoo, university or veterinaryThe Merck Veterinary Manual: a standard veterinary reference written and reviewed by veterinary specialists.
Merck Veterinary Manual: Overview of amphibians Zoo, university or veterinaryThe Merck Veterinary Manual: a standard veterinary reference written and reviewed by veterinary specialists.
AmphibiaWeb (University of California, Berkeley) Peer-reviewed researchUniversity-hosted database of amphibian biology and conservation.
GBIF Backbone Taxonomy (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) Peer-reviewed researchInternational scientific taxonomy used here for classification.
Wikipedia (species article) Community referenceFree encyclopedia; useful overviews with their own citations. Intro text is quoted under CC BY-SA 4.0.
PubMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine) Peer-reviewed researchIndex of peer-reviewed veterinary, zoo and husbandry research.
iNaturalist (captive observations) Community referenceCommunity observation platform run by the California Academy of Sciences and National Geographic; observations marked captive show animals living in homes, zoos and aquariums.