Frogs and Toads of Norway

November 22, 2018December 2, 2018 Adam

Frogs and Toads of Norway

Norway isn’t home to that many species of frogs and toads, only four.

Frogs

True Frog Family – Ranidae

The Pool Frog is found barely in the southern part of the country. It’s green color separates it from the other frogs in the country, making it easier to identify.

RanaArvalisFemale — Moor Frog (*Rana arvalis*)

European Common Frog (*Rana temporaria*)

The European Common Frog and the Moor Frog look just alike. The Common Frog has a more blunt head than the Moor Frog. The Moor Frog can also have more of a striped pattern. Neither characteristics are that great at identifying them sadly. The Common Frog is actually found more throughout the country while the Moor Frog is found in the southern part of the country.

Toads

True Toad Family – Bufonidae

The Common Toad is the only toad found in the country. They have dry, bumpy skin that makes them easy to identify. It is generally found along the coast of the country.

Amazon Milk Frog (Trachycephalus resinifictrix)

May 20, 2018 Adam

Common Name: Amazon Milk Frog or Mission Golden-eyed Tree Frog<
Scientific Name: Trachycephalus resinifictrix
Family: Hylidae
Location: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela
Max Size: 3.5 inches for females, 3 inches for males

The Amazon Milk Frog is a fairly large species of tree frog found in South America. They are commonly found in the pet trade now. They are named the “Milk” frogs because they release a milky secretion when threatened by a predator. For breeding, the Amazon Milk Frog lays their eggs in hollow trees that hatch the very next day.

Frogs of the World

Blyth’s River Frog (Limnonectes blythii)

April 15, 2018April 15, 2018 Adam

Limnonectes_blythii_from_Thailand — photo by Psumuseum

Common Name: Blyth’s River Frog, Giant Asian River Frog, or Blyth’s Wart Frog
Scientific Name: Limnonectes blythii
Family: Dicroglossidae
Location: Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam
Size: females can real 10.2 inches / 25.9 cm while males only reach 4.9 inches / 12.4 cm long

The Blyth’s River Frog is the largest frog in all of Asia. Their large size has its downsides, as people over harvested them for food as they can weigh more than 2 pounds.

The courtship behavior of Blyth’s River Frog is different. Instead of males calling for the females, the females call. The male also creates a hollow in the stream for the females to lay their eggs.

Frogs of the World

Frogs and Toads of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

March 3, 2018October 13, 2018 Adam

Frogs and Toads of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Frogs

True Frog family – Ranidae

The Green Frog is only found in Newfoundland. It has an incomplete dorsal ridge that runs nearly the length of its back.

The Mink Frog is only found in Labrador. They have an absent dorsal ridge or barely one.

The Northern Leopard Frog has a complete dorsal ridge. Its found only in Labrador.

The Wood Frog is known for the dark mask around its eyes. Its found only in the mainland.

Toads

True Toad Family – Bufonidae

The American Toad is the only toad in the whole province.

Frogs of the World

Frogs and Toads of Manitoba, Canada

March 3, 2018October 12, 2018 Adam

Frogs and Toads of Manitoba, Canada

Frogs

True Frog family – Ranidae

The Wood Frog is known for the mask around its eyes. Its found throughout the province.

The Northern Leopard Frog has large dark spots all over its body. They have a complete dorsal ridge.

The Green Frog’s dorsal ridge is incomplete and doesn’t reach its butt.

The Mink Frog’s dorsal ridge is absent or weak.

Tree Frog family – Hylidae

The Cope’s Gray Tree Frog and Eastern Gray Tree Frog are nearly identical. The only differences are their calls and chromosome number.s

The Spring Peeper has a distinct X shape on its back.

The Boreal Chorus Frog has three stripes that run down its back.

Toads

True Toad family – Bufonidae

The American Toad’s cranial crest forms opposing L shapes.

The Great Plains Toad’s cranial crest forms a V shape between the eyes.

Spadefoot Toad family – Scaphiopodidae

The Plains Spadefoot toad is the only spadefoot toad in the province. Look at the rear foot of the toad and you will find a keratinized spade on it which no other toad or frog in the province has.

Frogs of the World

Frogs and Toads of Alberta, Canada

March 3, 2018October 12, 2018 Adam

Frogs and Toads of Alberta, Canada

Frogs

True Frog family – Ranidae

The Wood Frog has a mask around its eyes. The colors of the wood frog varies from brown, silver, and red.

Columbia Spotted Frog has plenty of small dots all over its body that are lighter colored on the inside. The frog is found along the western half of the province .

The Northern Leopard Frog has large black, defined spots all over its body. It is found in the eastern half of the province .

Tree Frog family – Hylidae

The Boreal Chorus Frog is the only tree frog in the province . It has three lines that run down its back.

Toads

True Toad family – Bufonidae

The American Toad’s cranial crest forms opposing L shapes. It is found in the eastern half the state.

The Great Plains Toad’s cranial crest forms a V shape between the eyes. It is found in the southeast corner of the province.

The Western Toad does not have a cranial crest which separates it from the other true toads in the province. The toad is found in the western half of the province .

Spadefoot Toad family – Scaphiopodidae

The Plains Spadefoot toad is the only spadefoot toad in the province . Look at the rear foot of the toad and you will find a keratinized spade on it which no other toad or frog in the province has.

Frogs of the World

Frogs and Toads of British Columbia, Canada

March 2, 2018October 12, 2018 Adam

Frogs and Toads of British Columbia, Canada

Canada isn’t home to a lot of frog species but British Columbia has a fair number of species.

Frogs

True Frog family – Ranidae

The Northern Leopard Frog has large, distinct spots on its body.

The Columbia Spotted Frog has spots just like the leopard frog but they are smaller and lighter in the middle.

Wood Frog has a distinct and bold mask around its eyes.

The Red Legged Frog can have a mask around the eyes but its not very well defined. Underside of the hind legs also appear reddish.

Oregon Spotted Frog has a slight mask around its eyes. The belly has spots on it.

Tree Frog family – Hylidae

The Pacific Tree Frog lacks significant striping down its back.

Boreal Chorus Frog has three stripes that run down its back.

Tailed Frog family – Ascaphidae

The family Ascaphidae is known for the tails on the male frogs that help with reproduction. No other adult frogs have tails normally.

The Coastal Tailed Frog is found along the western coast of the province.

The Rocky Mountain Tailed Frog is found along the southeastern border of the province.

Toads

True Toad family – Bufonidae

The Western Toad is the only true toad in the providence. It has a parotoid gland behind its eye that true toads have.

Spadefoot Toad family – Scaphiopodidae

The Great Basin Spadefoot Toad is the only spadefoot toad in the state. It has a keratonized spade on its rear feet that it uses for digging.

Invasive Frogs

The American Bullfrog is a highly invasive frog species. Its introduction to the province signaled a decrease in numbers for other frog populations.