Introduced Range: Red
Listen to this frog:
A short example
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Introduced: not native to California
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Adult, Riverside County |
Adult, Imperial County |
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Juvenile, Imperial County |
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A distant male calling at night, Imperial County. |
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| Adult in defensive position, Travis County, Texas |
Adult, Willacy County, Texas |
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Juvenile, Williamson County, Texas |
Adult, Hidalgo County, Texas |
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Tadpoles, Bandera County, Texas |
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| Habitat |
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Habitat, Colorado River, Imperial County |
Habitat, Colorado River, Imperial County |
Habitat, hot Springs, Imperial County
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Irrigation pond habitat, Riverside County |
Habitat, agricultural drain,
Imperial County
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Habitat, agricultural drain,
Imperial County
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Habitat, Colorado River, Imperial County |
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Short Videos |
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| A male Rio Grande Leopard Frog calls at night from the edge of an agricultural canal in Imperial County, using his throat sack as well as pouches on the side of the neck to produce a variety of sounds. Another leopard frog joins in and they are both accompanied by an American Bullfrog. |
A male Rio Grande Leopard Frog calls at night in Imperial County, accompanied by insects. |
A male Rio Grande Leopard Frog calls at night from the edge of an agricultural canal in Imperial County, using his repertoire of grunts and chuckles, then he is accompanied by another leopard frog and several American Bullfrogs. |
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Description |
Size |
| Adults are 2 1/4 - 4 1/2 inches long from snout to vent (5.7 - 11.4 cm). |
| Appearance |
Coloring is pale green, grayish brown, olive. Dorsal spots are light and not clearly edged with light color. Thighs have dark reticulations. Prominent dorsolateral folds turn inward in front of the groin.
A light-colored stripe runs along the jaw but fades or disappears in front of the eye. Below is dusky colored and mottled with dark corlor. The groin and underside of the rear legs are yellowish. |
| Voice (Listen) |
| The call is a short, low-pitched trill or rattle, lasting less than a second, given singly or in rapid sequences of 2 - 3 trills. Calls at night. |
| Behavior |
| Typically a stream frog. Highly aquatic, seldom found away from water, but can tolerate fairly dry conditions by burrowing. Can be active at day and more likely at night. Active all year long except in periods of low temperature. Rio Grande Leopard Frogs shelter under rocks and in streamside vegetation. Tadpoles are adapted to swimming in streams and can swim against a current. Tadpoles will gulp air at the water surface to increase their oxygen uptake. |
| Diet |
| Feeds on a wide variety of terrestrial and aquatic prey, mostly invertebrates, and sometimes small frogs. Tadpoles feed on algae, inorganic particles, an diatoms. Typical of most frogs, the prey is located by sight, then a large sticky tongue is used to catch the prey and bring it into the mouth to eat. |
| Reproduction and Young |
Reproduction is aquatic. Fertilization is external. Breeding and egg-laying typically occurs in water after rainfall at almost any time of the year. In California, breeding probably takes place nearly all year, with a lull November through January.
Egg masses are attached to submerged vegetation. Clutch size is not know, but other leopard frog species lay from hundreds to several thousand eggs.
Tadpoles have been observed overwintering in Texas and Arizona. Since breeding occurs over many months, newly metamorphed juveniles and tadpoles of different sizes are usually found at a location. Juveniles utilize the same habitat as adults. |
| Range |
Native to Texas, New Mexico, and Mexico. Recently introduced into extreme southwest Arizona and California in the Imperial Valley and the lower Colorado River area of Imperial and Riverside Counties. Range is expanding through dispersal by agricultural canals.
According to Jennings and Fuller in their 2004 report on the distribution of leopard frogs in California "Rio Grande leopard frogs seem to have been accidentally introduced into the lower Colorado River near Yuma, Arizona, via one or more fish plants from either Texas or New Mexico between 1965 and 1971 (Platz et al. 1990). Since 1981, the species has expanded its range and has been taken in agricultural areas along the lower Colorado River (Clarkson and Rorabaugh 1989) and in the Imperial Valley (Jennings and Hayes 1994s)." This frog is continuing to expand its range in the Imperial Valley. |
| Habitat |
| In California, occurs in drainage ditches, irrigation canals, artificial irrigation ponds, sumps, desert hot springs, and along the lower Colorado river. Elsewhere, the species inhabits a variety of sources of permanent water - streams, rivers, artificial ponds, cattle tanks, ditches, natural wells, and at sources of permanent water in tropical forest, |
| Taxonomic Notes |
| In 2006, Frost et al divided North American frogs of the family Ranidae into two genera, Lithobates and Rana. Rana is still used in most existing references. |
| Conservation Issues (Conservation Status) |
| It appears that the introduction of the Rio Grande Leopard Frog has been responsible for the disappearance of the native Lowland Leopard Frog in southeastern California, although there may be other causes for the decline.
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Taxonomy |
| Family |
Ranidae |
True Frogs |
| Genus |
Lithobates |
American Water Frogs |
| Species |
berlandieri |
Rio Grande Leopard Frog
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Original Description |
Baird, 1859 - Report U.S. Mex. Bound. Survey, Vol. 2, Pt. 2, Rept., p. 27, pl. 36, figs. 7-10
from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz
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Meaning of the Scientific Name |
Lithobates - Greek
- Litho = a stone, bates = one that walks or haunts
berlandieri - honors Berlandier, Jean Louis
Taken in part from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
James Kaye has written a novel about Berlandier's explorations in Texas in 1828: Kaye, James. Berlandier - A French Naturalist on the Texas Frontier.
Trafford Publishing, 2010.
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Alternate Names |
Rana berlandieri
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Related or Similar California Frogs |
Lithobates pipiens
Lithobates catesbeianus
Lithobates yavapaiensis
Rana draytonii
Rana aurora
Rana boylii
Rana cascadae
Rana pretiosa
Rana muscosa
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More Information and References |
Natureserve Explorer
California Dept. of Fish and Game
AmphibiaWeb
Jennings, Mark R., and Michael M. Fuller. 2004. Origin and distribution of leopard frogs, Rana pipiens complex, in California. California Fish and Game 90(3):119-139.
Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003.
Behler, John L., and F. Wayne King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, 1992.
Powell, Robert., Joseph T. Collins, and Errol D. Hooper Jr. A Key to Amphibians and Reptiles of the Continental United States and Canada. The University Press of Kansas, 1998.
Bartlett, R. D. & Patricia P. Bartlett. Guide and Reference to the Amphibians of Western North America (North of Mexico) and Hawaii. University Press of Florida, 2009.
Elliott, Lang, Carl Gerhardt, and Carlos Davidson. Frogs and Toads of North America, a Comprehensive Guide to their Identification, Behavior, and Calls. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009.
Lannoo, Michael (Editor). Amphibian Declines: The Conservation Status of United States Species. University of California Press, June 2005.
Wright, Anna. Handbook of Frogs and Toads of the United States and Canada. Cornell University Press, 1949.
Davidson, Carlos. Booklet to the CD Frog and Toad Calls of the Pacific Coast - Vanishing Voices. Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, 1995.
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The following status listings come from the Special Animals List which is published several times each year by the California Department of Fish and Game.
This frog is not included on the Special Animals List, meaning there are no significant conservation concerns for it in California according to the Dept. of Fish and Game.
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Organization
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Status Listing
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| U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) |
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| California Endangered Species Act (CESA) |
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| California Department of Fish and Game |
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| Bureau of Land Management |
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| USDA Forest Service |
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| Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks |
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World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List
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