Kingdom Animalia Class Amphibia Family Hylidae Rank Species | Phylum Chordata Order Anura Genus Hyla | |
Similar Walker's tree frog, Wright's mountain tree frog, Hallowell's tree frog, Middle East tree frog, Hyla orientalis | ||
Hyla heinzsteinitzi is a species of frog of the family Hylidae. The species has been the subject of some controversy regarding its validity.
The species was described in 2007 by Constantin Grach, Yeshurun Plesser and Yehudah L. Werner in a paper they co-authored in the Journal of Natural History. It was named for marine biologist Heinz Steinitz.
Grach was reported as claiming that in 1997 he raised tadpoles collected from the Mamilla Pool in Jerusalem's Old City and noticed that the frogs were different from other species found in Israel, in particular their croaks. Grach also claimed the species may have become extinct at the time it was described. Hyla heinzsteinitzi was listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as "critically endangered" in 2008, and, as of 2016, retains this status.