Back to Name Page                          Back to Sound ID Page                        Back to Sight ID Page
Southern Leopard Frog
Lithobates sphenocephalus
 
Description: Size: 2-3.5 inches, (record 5 inches.)  Medium sized green or brown frog covered randomly with dark spots.  The dorsolateral ridge extends the entire length of the back.  The nose is sharply pointed and there is a white spot in the center of the tympanum.  This white spot helps separate this species from the Northern Leopard Frog and the Pickerel Frog. 

Voice: Call is a series of clucks interspersed with groans that sound like a hand rubbed over a balloon.  We have heard them call from January through the fall, with peak calling in February and March.  Some breeding choruses can be heard in September and October when the temperatures start to fall.

Habitat: Occurs at the edges of farm ponds, creeks, reservoirs, swamps and sloughs.  Strays far from the water in the summer and can be seen leaping through tall grasses in moist areas.

Range: Statewide with the exception of the higher elevations of the eastern mountains.