Characteristics:
A medium sized frog, around 3in. Generally tan or gray colored. The back is marked with dark round spots. Often times there is a spot on the snout. The dorsolateral folds are broken near the rear and inset towards the middle.
Habitat:
Found in prairies and former prairie regions. Often times they are found in cultivated fields and along road side ditches.
Behavior:
The leopard frogs have long, powerful legs and are capable of leaping great distances. These guys are generally noctournal and are never found very far from water. They are very skittish and will leap into the water at the first sign of danger. Mating takes place in later spring. They eat mostly small invertebrates. The plains leopard frog range overlaps with the southern leopard frog in places and they have been known to hybridize.
Personal Remarks:
We see this leopard frog far less than the southern leopard frog. They can be a bit difficult to distinguish from the southern leopard frog and often we see a leopard frog and just assume it is a southern but I am sure we have misidentified them in the past. You really need to get a hold of one to be able to see the distinguishing characteristics and that is not always easy. These guys can jump very far and can disappear very quickly.
A medium sized frog, around 3in. Generally tan or gray colored. The back is marked with dark round spots. Often times there is a spot on the snout. The dorsolateral folds are broken near the rear and inset towards the middle.
Habitat:
Found in prairies and former prairie regions. Often times they are found in cultivated fields and along road side ditches.
Behavior:
The leopard frogs have long, powerful legs and are capable of leaping great distances. These guys are generally noctournal and are never found very far from water. They are very skittish and will leap into the water at the first sign of danger. Mating takes place in later spring. They eat mostly small invertebrates. The plains leopard frog range overlaps with the southern leopard frog in places and they have been known to hybridize.
Personal Remarks:
We see this leopard frog far less than the southern leopard frog. They can be a bit difficult to distinguish from the southern leopard frog and often we see a leopard frog and just assume it is a southern but I am sure we have misidentified them in the past. You really need to get a hold of one to be able to see the distinguishing characteristics and that is not always easy. These guys can jump very far and can disappear very quickly.
