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Australian Lace-Lid Frog (Eremnoculus dayi)

The Australian Lace-Lid Frog is a small to medium-sized tree frog endemic to the wet tropics of north-eastern Queensland. It is associated mainly with flowing rainforest streams, so clearing, stream disturbance, vegetation removal and changes to local water conditions can affect habitat used for sheltering and breeding on development sites.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Vulnerable.

Breeding season

Australian Lace-Lid Frogs call from October to May and from October to December, with peak calling in January, February, November and December. Egg laying is recorded from spring to summer, with eggs and tadpoles associated with fast-flowing rocky streams, so avoid clearing, draining or dewatering stream habitat during the breeding period and confirm conditions locally.

Reproductive mode: Egg laying, with development through a larval tadpole stage.

Clutch size: Up to 100 eggs; one dataset reports 107 eggs.

Incubation: Not recorded.

Size at hatching or birth: Hatchling length is reported as 2.45 mm.

Age at maturity: Not recorded.

Nest or egg sites: Eggs are laid under or just above the water surface, in clusters attached to rocks, submerged objects or other surfaces in fast-flowing streams.

Breeding frequency: One clutch per year is reported in one dataset.

Confirm timing at the project site using local rainfall, stream flow and temperature conditions, and complete targeted night searches before clearing or dewatering.

  • Calling: Males call from January to May and October to December. Calling peaks in January, February, November and December; no calling is recorded from June to September.
  • Egg laying: Breeding is reported from spring to summer, with peak breeding from October to April. Eggs are laid in clusters under or just above the water surface and attached to rocks or submerged objects in fast-flowing streams.
  • Tadpoles: Monthly tadpole timing is not recorded. Tadpoles take 3 to 4 months to develop into frogs, so tadpoles may remain in stream habitat beyond the recorded October to April breeding period.
  • Froglets: Monthly emergence timing is not recorded. Because tadpole development takes 3 to 4 months, froglets may occur whenever earlier spawning has produced a completed cohort.
  • Active period: The species is reported to be nocturnal, but no separate seasonal activity period is recorded. Treat suitable rainforest, wet sclerophyll, stream and soak habitat as potentially occupied throughout the year, with night searches used when conditions are suitable.
  • Highest clearing risk: Risk is highest from October to April because breeding, calling and egg attachment to stream substrates are documented during this period. Risk remains in other months because tadpole development takes 3 to 4 months, seasonal activity is not defined, and streamside shelter may be occupied year-round.

Identification

The Australian Lace-Lid Frog is a small to medium-sized tree frog with a distinctive patterned lower eyelid. It is most likely to be encountered at night on streamside vegetation, rocks or other low surfaces near water.

Adults grow to 50 mm. The back is rich brown to orange-brown, sometimes with cream or lichen-like spots and blotches. The arms and legs have faint barring and a slight fringe along their outer edges.

The belly is cream-white and granular. The throat and undersides of the arms and legs are black. The iris is dark brown, and the pupil is vertical when constricted.

The lower eyelid has lines, veins and dots that produce the lace-like pattern used in the common name. The toes are fully webbed, the fingers are almost completely webbed, and the tympanum is distinct with its upper quarter covered by a skin fold.

Length: Up to 50 mm snout to vent length

Body mass: Up to 2.33 g in the cited dataset

Dorsal colour: Rich brown to orange-brown, with variable cream or lichen-like markings

Pupil: Vertical when constricted

Identification: Calls and field signs

Males call from low foliage or rocks close to streams. The species has two reported calls: a drawn-out "eeeeeeee" repeated three or four times when calling in a group, and a short "ee" repeated every 4 to 5 seconds when calling alone.

No species-specific information is provided in the documents for tracks, scats, eyeshine, sloughs or other terrestrial field signs. For night work, record the frog's position, height above ground, calling location and nearby water feature, and photograph the lower eyelid pattern where this can be done without handling the animal.

Identification: Similar species

The species may be confused with the Fringed Tree Frog. The Australian Lace-Lid Frog is distinguished by its vertical pupil and patterned lower eyelid.

Sexes are not described in the supplied documents. Do not assign sex from size or colour alone during a fauna inspection.

Distribution: National range

The Australian Lace-Lid Frog is restricted to north-eastern Queensland. The supplied documents do not provide a mapped population estimate, density, subpopulation count or confirmed stronghold ranking.

In Australia, the species is known from Queensland, ranging from Paluma north to Cooktown. It is endemic to the wet tropics of north-eastern Queensland.

The documented range is within the Wet Tropics region, although the supplied documents do not identify particular IBRA subregions or provide a state-by-state population map.

Australian state: Queensland only

Reported extent: Paluma to Cooktown

Elevation: 0 to 1,200 m above sea level

Distribution: Population information

The supplied information does not give a total population size, abundance estimate, density, number of occupied sites or named strongholds and subpopulations.

A later dataset reports the population trend as stable. A 2023 assessment cited in considered the species among taxa whose populations were stable or increasing after an earlier rapid and severe decline, although that assessment did not remove the EPBC Act listing in the supplied material.

Population size: Not reported in the supplied documents

Population trend: Stable in the cited dataset

EPBC Act status: Vulnerable

Habitat: Watercourse habitat

This frog is linked to moist rainforest watercourses, especially fast-flowing creeks in mountainous areas. It can also use slower watercourses and rock soaks where vegetation is adequate.

The primary habitat described is fast-flowing creeks in montane rainforest. The species is also recorded around slower watercourses and rock soaks when ample vegetation is present.

Retain the stream channel, wet margins, rocks and streamside vegetation as a connected unit during clearing and construction. The documents do not provide a measured buffer width, preferred stream order or minimum vegetation patch size.

Habitat: Structure and climate limits

Useful structural features include low foliage and rocks beside the stream, which are used as calling sites, together with moist rainforest vegetation around the watercourse.

The species has been reported from sea level to 1,200 m. The supplied documents do not specify temperature limits, rainfall thresholds, vegetation community names or the minimum amount of canopy cover required.

Recorded elevation range: 0 to 1,200 m

Main vegetation setting: Montane rainforest and vegetated stream margins

Water settings: Fast-flowing creeks, slower watercourses and vegetated rock soaks

Foraging habitat: Known information

The supplied sources do not provide a confirmed diet, prey list, hunting method or foraging range for this species. As a nocturnal arboreal frog, night inspections should focus on vegetation and rocks close to suitable watercourses.

The species is nocturnal and arboreal. No source supplied here identifies particular arthropods, vertebrates, plant matter, feeding height, feeding distance from streams or home-range size.

Avoid treating the absence of a recorded diet as evidence that the species does not eat a particular prey type. The cited dataset marks diet fields as unknown.

Activity: Nocturnal

General position: Arboreal

Diet: Not recorded in the supplied dataset

Foraging range: Not reported

Foraging habitat: Inspection guidance

During night searches, inspect low foliage, streamside vegetation and rocks near flowing or slow water. Search effort should cover both sides of the watercourse and vegetated areas around rock soaks where these occur.

Do not apply a species-specific food-plant requirement or foraging distance because none is provided in the documents.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Breeding is associated with watercourses and nearby low foliage or rocks. Males call close to streams, and eggs are attached to submerged objects.

Breeding occurs from spring to summer, with peak breeding reported from October to April. Males call from low foliage or rocks close to the stream.

Eggs are large and unpigmented. They are laid in clumps attached to submerged objects. The young develop through a larval stage.

Breeding season: Spring to summer

Peak breeding: October to April

Egg deposition: Clumps attached to submerged objects

Clutch size: Up to 100 eggs in; 107 eggs is the single dataset value in

Egg colour and size: Large and unpigmented; individual egg dimensions are not reported

Development: Larval stage

Incubation period: Not reported

Age at maturity: Not reported

Lifespan: Not reported

Breeding habitat: Features to retain

Retain submerged objects suitable for egg attachment, flowing or slow water with suitable water quality, and vegetated stream margins with low foliage and rocks for calling.

The documents do not specify egg attachment depth, water temperature, larval development time, breeding-site area or a minimum no-clearing buffer. These matters should be addressed through the project-specific survey and impact assessment.

Sheltering habitat: Likely shelter features

The species is arboreal and uses moist streamside habitat. The supplied documents do not identify a dedicated refuge type, shelter dimension or overwintering site.

The documented habitat includes rainforest vegetation, low foliage, rocks beside streams and vegetated rock soaks. These features should be retained where they occur within or beside the construction footprint.

No measurements are provided for preferred foliage height, rock size, crevice dimensions, canopy cover, refuge density or distance from water.

Documented locations on habitat features: Low foliage and rocks near streams; rainforest stream margins

Shelter size: Not reported

Burrows, hollows or dens: Not reported

Roosts or hibernation sites: Not reported

Sheltering habitat: Field handling

Inspect vegetation and rocks at night before clearing or moving materials in suitable creek and soak habitat. If a frog is found, keep it damp, shaded and away from machinery while following the project's approved fauna handling procedure.

The supplied documents do not provide a species-specific handling protocol, refuge placement distance or translocation method.

Threats: Clearing and construction

The species' dependence on rainforest watercourses makes streamside clearing and changes to water flow or water quality relevant risks during development. The supplied documents confirm a threatened listing and past severe decline but do not identify a complete, species-specific threat breakdown.

Clearing streamside rainforest can remove low foliage, rocks and other habitat used for calling, sheltering and night activity. Removing vegetation around slower watercourses or vegetated rock soaks may also reduce habitat where the species occurs outside fast-flowing creeks.

Earthworks, access tracks, creek crossings and material storage can disturb submerged objects used for egg attachment and can affect the connection between stream habitat and surrounding vegetation.

No species-specific clearing distance or approved buffer is given in the supplied documents. Treat occupied or suitable stream and soak habitat as sensitive until survey and impact assessment are complete.

Threats: Hydrology and fragmentation

Because breeding is tied to streams and eggs are attached to submerged objects, changes to flow, drying, sediment movement or water quality may affect breeding habitat. These mechanisms are practical risk considerations from the documented breeding ecology, not quantified threat thresholds in the supplied sources.

Fragmenting rainforest stream margins can remove movement cover between habitat elements. The documents do not provide a measured dispersal distance or fragmentation threshold.

Threats: Other threats and evidence gaps

The supplied documents do not specifically report road mortality, fire, introduced predators, chytrid disease, pesticides, weeds or climate change impacts for this species. These issues should not be recorded as confirmed species-specific threats without additional evidence.

The species is listed as Vulnerable under the EPBC Act and Endangered by the IUCN in the supplied material. also reports an earlier rapid and severe decline, followed by a later assessment of stable or increasing populations.

Commonwealth status: Vulnerable under the EPBC Act

IUCN status: Endangered

Reported historical pattern: Earlier rapid and severe decline; later assessment described populations as stable or increasing

Survey methodology: 1. Habitat and stream inspection

Australian lace-lid occurs in wet tropical north-eastern Queensland, from Paluma to Cooktown. It is associated mainly with fast-flowing creeks in montane rainforest, but may also use slower watercourses and vegetated rock soaks from 0 to 1,200 m elevation.

Map all creeks, drainage lines, rock soaks and wet rainforest within and downstream of the proposed disturbance area.

Inspect stream margins, low foliage, rocks, submerged objects and dense vegetation, because adults call from low foliage or rocks close to water and eggs are attached to submerged objects.

Known elevation range: 0 to 1,200 m

Known geographic range: Paluma to Cooktown, northern Queensland

  • Record stream flow, water permanence, bank vegetation, overhanging foliage, rock soaks, likely breeding attachment points and connections to retained rainforest.
  • Record elevation and the distance of each habitat feature from the proposed clearing footprint.

Survey methodology: 2. Nocturnal spotlighting and call surveys

Survey after dark along creek lines, slower watercourses and vegetated rock soaks, concentrating on low foliage and rocks beside the water.

Use quiet searches and listen for calling males, as the species is nocturnal and males call close to streams.

Breeding period: Spring to summer, with peak breeding from October to April

Reported adult size: Up to 50 mm

  • Run surveys during spring to summer, with priority from October to April when breeding activity peaks.
  • Record the date, start and finish time, weather, recent rainfall, air temperature if measured, stream condition, observers, route length and all visual and acoustic detections.
  • Identify the call pattern where possible: a drawn-out repeated call of three or four notes when calling in a group, or a short call repeated every 4 to 5 seconds when calling alone.
  • Search foliage, rocks, stream edges and nearby vegetation for frogs up to 50 mm long, noting the dark throat and under-surfaces, vertical pupil and patterned lower eyelid.

Survey methodology: 3. Eggs and breeding-site checks

Inspect submerged rocks, branches and other objects for clumps of large, unpigmented eggs during the breeding period.

Avoid disturbing egg clumps, streambed attachment points and occupied marginal vegetation during the inspection.

Reported clutch size: Clumps of up to 100 eggs in; 107 eggs as the single dataset figure in

Egg appearance: Large and unpigmented

  • Photograph and map any egg clump without removing it.
  • Record the number of clumps, estimated egg count, attachment surface, water depth if safely measurable, flow condition and nearby vegetation.
  • Treat a confirmed egg clump, calling adult or occupied stream margin as a stop-work location until the fauna spotter catcher and environmental manager have assessed it.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

  • Use repeated targeted night searches during suitable weather and the October to April breeding period where the program and approvals require species detection.
  • The supplied documents do not specify a minimum number of nights, search hours, transect length, trap nights or survey area, so set those measures in accordance with the current Queensland survey guidance, approval conditions and project risk assessment.
  • Do not use general frog presence as proof that this species is absent, because it can be confused with other tree frogs and no species-specific detection effort is provided in the supplied documents.
  • Submit confirmed records, negative survey results and mapped breeding habitat to the relevant Queensland wildlife database and any project-approved biodiversity system.
  • Report the scientific name Eremnoculus dayi and any former names used in project records, including Litoria dayi, Nyctimystes dayi and Ranoidea dayi.
  • Retain photographs, call recordings, GPS locations, habitat descriptions, weather records, observer names and survey effort with the project environmental records.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise habitat loss

Plan works around the species' stream and rainforest habitat rather than treating the frog as a general woodland fauna issue. The known range is restricted to wet tropical north-eastern Queensland, so projects outside that region should confirm habitat suitability before assigning species-specific controls.

Retain fast-flowing creeks, slower watercourses, vegetated rock soaks, rainforest vegetation, low streamside foliage and rocks used as calling sites.

Keep breeding sites and their connected streamside vegetation outside the disturbance footprint wherever practicable.

  • Maintain connections between retained rainforest patches and stream margins so frogs can move between suitable wet habitats.
  • Prevent changes to stream flow, sediment inputs, water quality, bank stability and shading where the works are near occupied or potential habitat.
  • Do not place stockpiles, access tracks, spoil or drainage outlets on creek margins, rock soaks or other mapped breeding habitat.

Before habitat disturbance: Confirm approvals and timing

The Australian lace-lid is listed as Vulnerable under the Commonwealth EPBC Act. Obtain project-specific environmental advice on whether referral or approval is required before clearing or altering habitat.

Confirm current Queensland threatened fauna, animal handling, clearing and waterway requirements before works begin.

Commonwealth listing: Vulnerable under the EPBC Act

Queensland status reported in the supplied material: Vulnerable under the Nature Conservation (Animals) Regulation 2020

  • Check EPBC Act referral obligations, Queensland permits and approval conditions for clearing, capture, handling, relocation and work in or near waterways.
  • Schedule the highest-risk stream and vegetation works outside the October to April peak breeding period where practicable.
  • If works must occur during the breeding period, stage them around confirmed breeding sites and include additional fauna supervision in the fauna management plan.

Before habitat disturbance: Prepare the site

  • Complete a pre-clearance survey of all mapped creeks, slower watercourses, rock soaks, streamside vegetation and submerged egg attachment sites.
  • Mark no-go areas, breeding sites, retained vegetation and stream buffers clearly on plans and on the ground before machinery arrives.
  • Install exclusion fencing where it can prevent entry into retained streamside habitat without blocking frog movement along the creek.
  • Brief the fauna spotter catcher, supervisors and operators on the frog's appearance, nocturnal behaviour, call, habitat and stop-work procedure.
  • Provide a clean, secure container, damp non-abrasive material and a documented release site only if an authorised person determines that capture and relocation are lawful and necessary.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls and machinery interface

Use daily supervision at any work front that affects creek, rainforest or rock-soak habitat. The fauna spotter catcher should work ahead of machinery and retain authority to pause work when a frog, egg clump or occupied habitat is found.

  • Inspect exclusion fencing, creek buffers, access routes, sediment controls and retained vegetation before work starts each day.
  • Keep the fauna spotter catcher in direct contact with the machine operator and supervisor, using a clear stop-work signal.
  • Search the work area before vegetation removal, rock movement, dewatering, trenching, pumping and vehicle access.
  • Use low-impact access and avoid driving, parking, refuelling or storing materials beside creeks, rock soaks and wet rainforest margins.
  • Stop work if visibility, rainfall, flooding, sediment runoff or machinery noise prevents an effective fauna inspection.

During habitat disturbance: Handle habitat features carefully

Although the supplied sources do not identify a specialised shelter feature for this frog, rocks, low foliage, stream margins and submerged objects are relevant because the species calls and breeds around them.

  • Do not remove or relocate rocks, branches or other submerged objects where eggs or frogs are present.
  • Inspect and hand-clear dense vegetation, rock edges and damp debris before machinery enters a mapped habitat area.
  • Prevent sediment, concrete washout, hydrocarbons, chemicals and altered drainage from entering occupied or potential breeding water.
  • If dewatering is unavoidable, stop and obtain the approved fauna and aquatic response before pumping from a stream, soak or breeding site.

During habitat disturbance: Respond to frogs, eggs and injured animals

  • Stop work immediately when an Australian lace-lid, suspected lace-lid, egg clump or calling site is found within the work area.
  • Keep personnel, lights, vehicles and machinery away from the animal while the authorised fauna handler assesses the situation.
  • Do not allow untrained workers to catch, handle, photograph by touch or relocate the frog.
  • Use only an appropriately authorised fauna handler and follow the permit, approval and fauna management plan for capture and release.
  • Release a healthy captured frog into nearby retained suitable habitat connected to the same creek system only when that action is authorised and the release site has been approved.
  • Place an injured frog in a suitable secure container and arrange prompt assessment by a veterinarian or permitted wildlife carer.
  • Treat an egg clump as a no-go feature and obtain specialist direction before moving, drying, covering or exposing it.

During habitat disturbance: Stop-work triggers and records

  • Stop work for any confirmed or suspected frog, egg clump, active calling site, unexpected wet habitat, stream flow change or breach of a mapped exclusion area.
  • Record the date, time, GPS location, observer, work activity, weather, habitat, photographs, identification confidence, action taken and release or treatment details.
  • Record all captures, relocations, injuries, deaths, egg clumps, breaches, corrective actions and periods of stopped work in the daily environmental report.
  • Notify the project environmental manager and the relevant approval holder promptly when a listed species or breeding site is found.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Complete follow-up checks before the work front is signed off. Focus on retained creek margins, breeding features and any habitat that was exposed to clearing, sediment, altered flow or machinery access.

  • Reinspect the cleared area, retained stream margins, rock soaks, access tracks and drainage controls for stranded or injured frogs.
  • Check that no egg clumps, occupied low foliage, rocks or submerged attachment sites were damaged or left isolated by the works.
  • Remove temporary materials and repair exclusion fencing, sediment controls and drainage controls before demobilisation.
  • Record any frog detections during post-clearance checks using the same location, habitat and evidence standards as the pre-clearance survey.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and maintenance

Priority breeding period for follow-up: October to April

  • Monitor retained creek habitat and restored areas during the October to April breeding period where required by approvals or the fauna management plan.
  • Check for returning adults, calling males, egg clumps, persistent water, streamside vegetation loss, erosion, weeds, sediment and changed flow.
  • Maintain buffers, exclusion fencing, water-quality controls and access restrictions for as long as they are required by the approval or management plan.

After habitat disturbance: Close-out reporting and offsets

  • Provide the approval holder with the final survey effort, detection records, incident register, habitat maps, photographs, rehabilitation results and any unresolved risks.
  • Submit confirmed records to the relevant Queensland wildlife database and other databases required by the approval.
  • Assess offsets or other compensatory measures where residual impacts on EPBC-listed habitat remain after avoidance, mitigation and rehabilitation.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore wet stream habitat

Rehabilitation should recreate the wet, shaded stream-edge conditions used by the Australian lace-lid. The supplied sources do not identify particular plant species, nest boxes, hollow requirements or fire thresholds for this frog, so use locally appropriate rainforest and creek rehabilitation designs approved for the site.

Re-establish native wet-tropics vegetation along creek margins, slower watercourses and vegetated rock soaks, with enough low foliage and bank cover for calling and shelter.

Restore natural drainage and flow patterns rather than creating isolated ponds that do not function as part of the local creek system.

  • Use locally sourced native plants suited to the site's rainforest and stream-edge community, with species selection confirmed by the project ecologist or Queensland authority.
  • Stabilise banks with living vegetation and natural materials while avoiding hard structures that remove shallow margins, rocks or submerged attachment surfaces.
  • Reinstate suitable rocks, branches and other natural stream features only where this is consistent with waterway approval conditions and will not obstruct fish passage or create erosion.
  • Keep restored watercourses shaded, connected and free of construction sediment, weeds, rubbish and chemical contamination.

Rehabilitation actions: Manage threats at the restored site

  • Control weeds that replace native streamside foliage or reduce cover beside the water.
  • Prevent feral animal access, uncontrolled vehicle movement, stock access and repeated disturbance of creek margins where these threaten restored habitat.
  • Use a site-specific fire plan that protects wet rainforest, creek buffers and rock-soak vegetation, because the supplied sources do not provide a species-specific fire interval.
  • Do not install nest boxes or hollow-bearing tree replacements as a substitute for stream and rainforest restoration unless another fauna value at the site requires them.

Rehabilitation actions: Measure rehabilitation success

Species indicators to monitor: Adults, calling males, egg clumps, suitable low foliage, stream margins and vegetated rock soaks

  • Set out permanent photo points and mapped monitoring locations at restored creek margins, rock soaks and any retained breeding sites.
  • Measure survival and cover of planted native vegetation, bank stability, water persistence, flow condition, sediment control and weed presence.
  • During suitable night surveys, record Australian lace-lid sightings, calls, egg clumps and use of restored low foliage and stream margins.
  • Compare monitoring results with the pre-work habitat record and keep management actions in place until the site supports stable vegetation, functioning wet habitat and no ongoing construction impact.

Sources