Anura Rana palustris -- Pickerel Frog
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Purple shade indicates vouchered specimens. Light blue (cyan)
shade indicates photographic records. Yellow shade indicates verified
sighting. Slanted hatch indicates pre-1980 records only
NOTE: Not all specimens upon which these maps are based have been verified.
Key Characters: Two rows of somewhat square black spots on back between wide dorsolateral folds that extend from eyes to hips; undersides of thighs bright yellow in life.
Similar Species: Crawfish frog, northern leopard frog, plains leopard frog, southern leopard frog.
Description: Small to medium-sized (4.5-7.0 cm SVL) gray or tan frog with back spots symmetrically arranged and square rather than round. Occasionally, spots fuse to form rectangles or long bars on back. On sides, spots are higher than long and aligned in one row. Belly plain white.
Habitat: Dense herbaceous vegetation along streams and within fens, often near forests. Rocky, spring-fed streams along Middle Mississippi Border Division. Characteristic animal of cave entranceways.
Natural History: Lives in cool, high-quality waters, and can withstand lower temperature than most other species of Rana. Adults migrate to clear, cool ponds to mate during April&endash;May and females lay about 2,000 eggs each. Breeding call is a low, snoring sound lasting 1-2 seconds. Tadpoles transform by midsummer.
Status: Uncommon, vulnerable to habitat deterioration. A habitat specialist, its distribution is fragmentary and incompletely known.