Anura Rana sylvatica -- Wood 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: Dark mask on side of face that obscures lower half of eye; dorsolateral fold extends from eye to hip; tympanum smaller than eye; 2-3 joints of the 4th toe free of webbing.
Similar Species: Green frog.
Description: Small to medium-sized (3.5-6.0 cm SVL) tan to reddish brown frog. Back occasionally sports a few scattered black dots. Legs sometimes crossed with dark bands. Breeding male is smaller than female, is darker, and has enlarged thumbs.
Habitat: Solitary inhabitant of mature, moist forests. May wander far from breeding habitats of shallow vernal pools and forest ponds.
Natural History: Well camouflaged to move about on forest floors, feeding and making long, low leaps when disturbed. Diet includes a variety of invertebrates. Large breeding aggregations appear in ponds and vernal forest pools after first warm rains of spring (mid-February to March in south, mid-March to April in north). The 5-6 clucking sounds of individual mating calls do not carry far. Female lays 300-900 eggs that hatch in 10 days to two weeks. Tadpoles grow rapidly and transform in May in the south, June in the north.
Status: Localized populations more vulnerable than those of many frogs. Populations scattered in northern corners of state, in the east, and in Shawnee Hills, avoiding the Grand Prairie and Till Plains.