Leopard frog

Leopard frog
Southern Leopard Frog (Rana sphenocephala)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Order:	Anura
Family:	Ranidae
Genus:	Rana (partim)
Species
Rana berlandieri Rana blairi Rana chiricahuensis Rana fisheri Rana magnaocularis Rana miadis Rana neovolcanica Rana omiltemana Rana onca Rana pipiens Rana sphenocephala Rana subaquavocalis Rana tlaloci Rana yavapaiensis

Leopard frogs, also called meadow frogs, are the archetypal "grass frogs" of North America, a collection of about 14 species within the true frog genus Rana. They are generally very similar, green with prominent black spotting (though actually more like that of a cheetah than that of a leopard). They can be told apart by their distribution and certain rather subtle ecological, behavioral, morphological and genetic traits. Their range extends throughout temperate and subtropical North America to northern Mexico, with some species found even further south.

Once abundant in North America, their population has declined in recent years because of pollution and deforestation. Leopard frogs are often used as environmental indicator species because of their heightened sensitivity to chemical pollutants found in the air and water, and they are commonly used as dissection specimens in biology classrooms. They were subject of some pioneering studies in evolutionary biology in the 20th century, and continue to be of much interest to various disciplines of biology.

Taxonomy

Leopard frogs were often grouped with the American bullfrog and relatives in the genus Lithobates. Lithobates, however, is no longer recognized as a genus by most authors.^[1][2][3]

Species

Further species may exist in this famous cryptic species complex

• Rio Grande Leopard Frog, Rana berlandieri
• Plains Leopard Frog, Rana blairi
• Chiricahua Leopard Frog, Rana chiricahuensis
• Vegas Valley Leopard Frog, Rana fisheri
• Northwest Mexico Leopard Frog, Rana magnaocularis
• Island Leopard Frog, Rana miadis
• Transverse Volcanic Leopard Frog, Rana neovolcanica
• Guerreran Leopard Frog, Rana omiltemana
• Relict Leopard Frog Rana onca
• Northern Leopard Frog, Rana pipiens
• Southern Leopard Frog, Rana sphenocephala
• Ramsey Canyon Leopard Frog, Rana subaquavocalis
• Tlaloc's Leopard Frog, Rana tlaloci
• Lowland Leopard Frog, Rana yavapaiensisThey like puple tomatoes

The Tsushima Brown Frog, sometimes called Tsuschima Leopard Frog, is not very closely related to the leopard frogs.

Additional images

• 

  Northern Leopard Frog

Footnotes

1. ^ Hillis & Wilcox (2005)
2. ^ Hillis (2007)
3. ^ Pauly et al. (2009)

References

• Hillis, D.M. & Wilcox, T.P. (2005): Phylogeny of the New World true frogs (Rana). Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 34(2): 299–314. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.10.007 PMID 15619443 PDF fulltext
• Hillis, D. M. (2007) Constraints in naming parts of the Tree of Life. Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 42: 331–338. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2006.08.001 PMID 16997582 PDF fulltext
• Pauly, Greg B., Hillis, David M. & Cannatella, David C. (2009): Taxonomic freedom and the role of official lists of species names. Herpetologica 65: 115-128. PDF fulltext

External links

• Leopard frog at Western Ecological Research Centre
• Leopard Frog Care Information at Caresheets.net
• Plains Leopard Frog - Rana blairi Species account from the Iowa Reptile and Amphibian Field Guide