What kind frog do i have

The green frog almost always calls from the water, selecting a shallow area where it floats on the surface or squats on the broad leaf of a bullhead-lily or other aquatic plant.

The vocal sac is internal and when inflated during calling causes the throat and sides to expand. The green frog emits a low-pitched twangy sound, similar to that produced by plucking one of the lower strings on a banjo or other stringed instrument.

A single note is most frequently produced, although it may be repeated three or four times, decreasing in volume with each successive note. It has been described by some people as resembling the slow tapping of a woodpecker. The diet of the northern green frog is varied and consists of vertebrates and invertebrates. Water striders, dragonfly larvae also known as mud bugs and a variety of other insects are consumed by a hungry green frog.

Additional prey includes worms, small fish and small crayfish, all easily found sharing this amphibian's habitat. Rana palustris. Going back to the earliest years of the 20th Century and before, this frog had been a popular bait used by anglers fishing for "pickerel"—hence its name. Today, although frogs still are used as bait, anglers should be aware that regulations affect the number of frogs they may have in possession at any one time.

It benefits from a built-in defense mechanism particularly effective against snakes and other animals that normally prey on amphibians. And once experienced, snakes seem to avoid pickerel frogs—and even their lookalikes—thereafter.

The pickerel frog secretes a substance from its skin that is at least irritating, but often toxic to would-be predators. It is distasteful and emits an extremely unpleasant odor that even humans find obnoxious.

The secretion is toxic to frogs other than its own species and has been known to be fatal to other frogs when placed in the same water-filled container. The pickerel frog does not rely totally on its toxic skin secretions for protection. When frightened, it quickly leaps to find cover under shoreline mosses, or by suddenly diving beneath the water, it buries itself in mud lining the pond or stream bottom.

The pickerel frog is a spotted frog similar in appearance to the leopard frog, but with distinctly different markings. The pickerel frog has two rows of squarish spots down the back, but the leopard frog's spots are rounded and usually not in rows as well-defined as are those on the pickerel frog. Also, the leopard frog's wide head is more blunt than the pickerel's somewhat pointed snout. The skin of the pickerel frog is smooth with an almost metallic-like lustre. The background color is tan or a light grayish to light brown.

The two rows of parallel spots or blotches down the back are contained between the dorsolateral folds. The spots are squarish and although irregularly shaped with uneven lines, clearly are not round.

They are black to dark brownish or reddish brown. Small, square-like spots also appear on the sides of the pickerel frog. The belly is whitish up front, becoming bright yellow to orange toward the rear. Dark bars mark the upper surface of the hind legs, which are bright yellow to orange underneath. The leg markings also help distinguish this frog from the leopard frog. The folds of skin, the dorsolateral ridges, are prominent and extend to the groin.

They are yellowish or creamy to a golden color. A light streak outlines the upper lip or jaw. The pickerel frog is distributed from Canada's Maritime Provinces in the north to the Carolinas in the south. Its western boundary runs from Wisconsin to eastern Texas. In Pennsylvania, each of the 67 counties has its share of pickerel frogs. This amphibian spends more time out of the water than in it.

For the most part, water is used only as a breeding site and a haven from enemies. The pickerel frog prefers slow-moving water. This frog is at home in marshes, but it can also be found along streams and cool springs. During the summer it moves far into grassy fields or meadows that are moist, seeking out damp areas thick with low vegetation. Grassy areas along streams and woodland ponds also provide suitable habitat.

The pickerel frog hibernates from October until March, but usually does not go into its winter retreat until pushed there by autumn's first frost. The pickerel frog breeds during the period April until May, usually a bit later than the leopard frog.

Water temperatures in the upper 50s nudge the male to begin calling its mate. The male joins the female in amplexus and fertilizes the eggs as they are released. Breeding is accomplished in shallow water where the globular egg mass adheres to the stalks and stems of standing, sometimes emergent, vegetation.

The female lays 2, to 3, brown and cream-colored eggs. They incubate for several days to perhaps a few weeks, depending on water temperature. The warmer the water, the sooner the eggs hatch. The tadpoles are greenish and sprinkled with fine black dots.

The tail fin is edged in black. They reach about three inches in length. Only the male pickerel frog calls, at times singing beneath the surface of the water from where it sounds like a reverberant snore. At other times the calling is done at the breeding site with a full chorus of other pickerel frogs emitting a slow, low-pitched, steady croak, of one to two seconds duration.

This species uses two vocal sacs. When filled with air, they cause the area between the ear and foreleg to become swollen, producing a puffiness along each side of the head. The pickerel frog preys on caterpillars, a variety of insects including flies and gnats, crayfish and spiders.

Like other frogs, it is carnivorous and feeds on just about anything it can handle. Rana pipiens. The leopard frog is one of our most attractive frogs. It is primarily nocturnal and prefers to spend the better part of the day in hiding. It comes out at twilight to fill the night air with its song or forage for a meal. Although extremely agile, those who have studied them say that the leopard frog is not as agile as its cousin, the pickerel frog.

However, it does take honors for the longest jumper. Even the larger bullfrog cannot cover a greater distance in a single leap. If fleeing from danger, the leopard frog is able to cover a lot of ground, taking three or four long, low erratic leaps, each time going off in a different direction. The leopard frog is slender with relatively smooth skin, although small tubercles cover much of the body. The head is wide, ending in a more or less blunt snout. The leopard frog resembles the pickerel frog, although the body color is not tan as is usually the case with the pickerel frog.

The leopard frog is brownish or green. Its dark spots are round, not the squarish shape of the pickerel frog's spots. The spots appear in two or three rows between prominent dorsolateral folds. The spots are black or reddish brown and edged with a lighter color that produces a halo effect around them.

The wide dorsolateral ridges are creamy to yellowish or bronze. Dark spots also appear on the sides below the folds of skin. The belly is white to yellowish and the throat is white. Each of the legs is clearly marked with dark bars. The under surface of the legs is whitish, not yellow or orange as on the pickerel frog. The upper jaw, which protrudes over the lower, is marked with a light spot or line. A yellowish band streams from the end of the muzzle backward to the shoulder.

The leopard frog ranges far into Canada in the north and south to Kentucky. It extends to enter the eastern edge of the Pacific states. Populations of the leopard frog occupy a large portion of Pennsylvania.

It is apparently absent from the northeast, in a general sense the Pocono Mountains; from a small corner in the southeast; and from the extreme northcentral part of the state, encompassing parts of the Allegheny Mountains.

During the summer months the leopard frog wanders far from water when it can be seen in moist meadows and fields. It especially likes damp grasslands, but marshes and small ponds also hold colonies of the leopard frog. It cannot withstand a great amount of heat and therefore spends most of its time in areas that are moist and heavily covered with vegetation.

Interestingly, the leopard frog resides in brackish marshes as well as fresh water. That cannot be the case in Pennsylvania, though, because it is absent from the southeast counties and the Delaware River estuary, our only potential locale for salt marshes. After experiencing the heat of summer and land-based excursions, the leopard frog seeks protection from winter's coldest days by retreating to the water. Digging well into loose gravel or sand on the bottom, the leopard frog hibernates until the spring warming trend again brings it scurrying to the surface.

It doesn't take too much of a warming trend to bring the leopard frog out of hibernation. It is among the first frogs to emerge in the spring—perhaps late winter would be a better description—when water temperatures have climbed barely into the low 40s.

The mating period can begin in March and continue until May or even June. Breeding takes place in shallow water where eggs are laid encased in a round, flattened transparent gelatinous mass. Thus protected, the egg mass is attached to submerged vegetation, or sometimes rests on the bottom.

From 5, to 6, eggs are released by the female; they are blackish on top with the lower part, the yolk, a creamy white. The yolk is available as a source of nourishment for the new tadpole for several days. Depending on water temperature, the incubation period for the eggs can be as short as four days or as long as a month.

Average time to hatching is probably nine or 10 days. As they escape from the egg, the tadpoles have a brownish body and translucent tail crests sprinkled with small black dots. They remain in this larval stage for two to three months. When they attain a length of about three inches, metamorphosis takes place, and by July or August, frisky young leopard frogs have been welcomed into the world. Among the leopard frogs, both the male and female can be heard calling, although the female's song is not as loud as her mate's.

A pair of vocal sacs expand and collapse as the frog produces its vibrant song. Expanded, the vocal sacs are round, and cause the area above the front legs to swell. Collapsed, the sacs become wrinkled and baggy.

The leopard frog sings early in the spring, usually heard from the shallows of a pond or from deep within a marsh that is just beginning to feel the effects of warmer, longer days. As air is pushed from the vocal sacs, the frog produces a low guttural, reverberant sound, lasting for about three seconds.

It ends in a clucking-like grunt. The leopard frog does most of its foraging as it travels over land, taking insects and other prey from the surrounding grasses. It feeds under water only on rare occasions. Spiders, worms, grasshoppers, and at times, snails add variety to the leopard frog's diet.

Rana sylvatica. The wood frog is primarily a diurnal amphibian; that is, the frog is most active during the day. Even so, due to its secretive and solitary nature and natural camouflage, it seldom is seen other than during the breeding season. More terrestrial than a lot of other frogs, the wood frog is also capable of jumping farther than most.

In addition, when fleeing from danger it is able to turn itself around as it hits the ground to face a startled enemy eyeball to eyeball. Thus prepared, it can take other evasive measures, if necessary. The body of the wood frog appears more flat than most other frogs. The head is broad, but ends in a pointed snout. Its skin is relatively smooth and moist to the touch.

Although usually a shade of tan, the body also can be pinkish to an occasional dark brown. An important identifying mark is a prominent, dark mask that covers each eye and extends along the side of the head to just behind the eardrum tympanum. A light line or stripe marks the edge of the upper lip. The chest is marked with a dark spot located near the base of the forelimbs. The white belly sometimes is mottled with darker pigment.

In some specimens, dark bars break up the tan color of the legs, which on the undersides are yellow-white to greenish white. The toes are webbed, but only slightly. The dorsolateral ridges are distinctly evident and extend all the way to the groin.

They are a lighter shade than the rest of the body. The wood frog has protruding large eyes, bigger than the tympanum. The gold iris of each eye is darker on its lower half than on the upper half. The wood frog can find suitable habitat throughout the entire state. This frog is quite adaptable—it is found north of the Arctic Circle, the only North American frog residing in this frosty environment.

It ranges across Canada to Alaska in the north and in its eastern range as far south as the southern Appalachians. A terrestrial animal, it ranges far from water during the summer months. It likes shade and moisture, so damp woodlands are a favorite haunt of the wood frog. Well-camouflaged against the dead leaves littering the forest floor, the wood frog spends much of its time here, unnoticed and alone. Although a strong swimmer and able to produce a vigorous kick with its hind legs, the wood frog spends little time in the water except when it breeds.

As winter settles over its wooded home, the wood frog burrows beneath the forest debris to hibernate among the leaves or in the soil beneath moss-covered logs.

Along with the leopard frog, the wood frog is among the first to mate and breed. Warm rains are needed to entice the wood frog from hibernation and when the air temperatures reach 50 degrees, the male begins to call his mate. Often, the first singing is heard even before the winter's coating of ice has completely melted from the breeding pond. The male wood frog begins to call as early as February or March.

The male greets the female in a day or two and the eggs are quickly deposited by the female and fertilized by the male. The eggs usually are laid in slow-moving pools of streams or small ponds. In the event of a late freeze, the eggs do not die but simply await warmer temperatures to develop. Before releasing the eggs, the mated wood frogs swim close to shore where the water is shallow and warmest. They choose an area with a profuse stand of submerged vegetation, and these stems, branches and shoots receive the globular egg masses as they are deposited.

The black eggs are encased in a clear jelly mass that adheres to the plants just below the surface. The wood frog lays between 2, and 3, eggs and then quickly leaves the breeding site.

After being in the water for a little more than a week, the egg masses begin to flatten, float upward to the surface and spread out, looking much like the familiar green scum often found on ponds. The eggs at this point take less than a month to hatch. They remain in the tadpole, or larval, stage for about two months. Only the male wood frog calls and he may do so while floating on the open surface of the mating pond. The song is heard early in the breeding season, about the only time the wood frog vocalizes.

The call consists of a series of short, raspy duck-like quacks, each about one second in duration. At times, the wood frog may produce a clacking noise, but it always sounds hoarse. The call of the wood frog is not heard over great distances. The moist forest home preferred by the wood frog provides a varied menu.

This amphibian of the woods preys on numerous insects and other small invertebrates. You may be trying to access this site from a secured browser on the server. Please enable scripts and reload this page. An Official Pennsylvania Government Website. Fishing Licenses. Page Content. A Sac Full o' Sound Among the amphibians, the frogs and toads are capable of producing the most distinctive and greatest variety of calls. Spadefoot Family Pelobatidae Eastern spadefoot — Scaphiopus holbrookii Although there are seven members of this family residing in North America, only one occurs in Pennsylvania.

Toads Family Bufonidae Eastern American toad — Anaxyrus americanus americanus Fowler's toad — Anaxyrus fowleri This family of toads is commonly called garden toads because of their habit of invading neighborhood gardens in search of insects, a favorite food. Tree frogs Family Hylidae Northern cricket frog — Acris crepitans Spring peeper — Pseudacris crucifer Eastern gray treefrog — Hyta versicolor Mountain chorus frog — Pseudacris brachyphona Upland chorus frog — Pseudacris feriarum New Jersey chorus frog — Pseudacris kalmi Western chorus frog — Pseudacris triseriata The two small frogs of the genus Hyla spend most of their time in trees or small shrubs.

True Frogs Family Ranidae Bullfrog — Lithobates catesbeianus Northern green frog — Lithobates clamitans melanota Pickerel frog — Lithobates palustris Northern leopard frog — Lithobates pipiens Wood frog — Lithobates sylvaticus Southern leopard frog — Lithobates sphenocephalus utricularius These are the larger frogs, usually with a slim waist and long legs.

Eastern American Toad Bufo americanus americanus General characteristics. Fowler's Toad Bufo woodhousii fowleri General characteristics. Northern Cricket Frog Acris crepitans crepitans General characteristics. Northern Spring Peeper Hyla crucifer crucifer General characteristics.

Eastern Gray Treefrog Hyla versicolor versicolor General characteristics. Mountain Chorus Frog Pseudacris brachyphona General characteristics. Western Chorus Frog Pseudacris triseriata General characteristics. Bullfrog Rana catesbeiana General characteristics.

Northern Green Frog Rana clamitans melanota General characteristics. In the event winter does force it to seek refuge, the mud or moss of a pond or other shallow water offers sufficient protection Reproduction. Pickerel Frog Rana palustris General characteristics. Answer Quick answer Odd-coloured amphibians usually turn out to be healthy, native species that simply have unusual colouring. For example, we often think of Common Frogs as being a shade of green or brown but individuals can also be yellow, orange, red, cream or even black.

Occasionally, a red colouring can be a sign of disease , but usually only when coupled with other symptoms. For further information and to record your sightings, you can also download our Dragon Finder app.

Find out more about the native and non native amphibians you might see in the UK here. Outside of the breeding season they can roam up to metres from a breeding pond. Adults can grow to 9cm nose to tail. Frogs often have bands of darker striping on the back legs. Many individuals have irregular dark markings on the back but colouration is extremely variable: yellow, pink, red, orange and black individuals are often reported.

Common frogs are carnivores so feed on a variety of invertebrate prey including slugs and snails which makes them especially popular with gardeners. Despite their wide mouths, frogs drink by absorbing water through their skin and swallow using their eyes — they retract them into the head to help push food down their throats.

When they moult, they usually eat the skin as it is a valuable source of nutrition! Frogs make attractive meals for a vast array of wildlife, so they are vulnerable to predators on the ground, underwater and from above. It is known that they close their eyes, but no confirming brain scans have determined whether or not they actually have a true sleep period.

Frogs do not have external ears like us. However, they do have eardrums and an inner ear. Some frogs have small tympanums, while others have ones that are larger than their eyes. The size of the tympanum and the distance between them are relative to the frequency and wavelength of the species male call. Their eardrum works like a regular eardrum with one very special adaptation…it is actually connected to their lungs. The lungs vibrate and are almost as sensitive to hearing as the eardrum.

This allows frogs to make really loud sounds without hurting their own eardrums! The lungs are capable of doing this by equalizing the pressure differences between the outer surface of the eardrum and the inner surface of the eardrum. Frogs use their eyeballs to swallow. Frogs eat their prey whole and their eyeballs actually sink down into their mouth and push the food down into their throat. It depends on the species. It can be really hard to tell the males from the females because the sex organs are internal for both males and females.

But in many species, the female is larger than the male and the males sometimes have larger toe pads used during mating to grab onto the female. Males also call to attract females and defend their territory, so if you see a frog calling it is probably a male.

The throats of many male frogs are darker than the females. In certain species, it can be easy to tell the difference. In Bullfrogs, the males are larger and have a larger tympanum these are ears-the circles located directly behind the eyes.

In many tropical frogs, the males have brighter more vibrant colors. Frog eggs do not have a shell, so they need some kind of moisture to keep them from drying out until they hatch. Some frogs have come up with amazing ways to keep their eggs wet besides laying them directly in water. There are frogs that lay eggs under leaves above water in damp rainforests and when they hatch the tadpoles fall into the water where they can develop into little froglets.

There are some frogs that carry their eggs on their back and the male Darwin frog actually swallows the eggs and keeps them in his vocal sac until they hatch!