Green Frog

Order: Anura

Family: Ranidae

Genus: Rana

Species: R. clamitans

Identifying Characteristics:

- Adult: range from 2-4 in in body length (snout to vent)

- Males: have a tympanum (external hearing structure) twice the diameter of the eye and the bright yellow throat. Throat is bright yellow

- Female: tympanum diameter is about the same size as the eye.

- Color: green to greenish brown above, dark brown or grayish dorsal spots/blotches. White on the stomach and usually some dark spots or mottling under the legs and head. Throat is bright yellow

- dorsolateral ridges, prominent, seam-like skin folds that run down the sides of the back

Special Characteristics:

- Live where there is shallow fresh water: ponds, road-side ditches, lakes, swamps, streams, and brooks. They are most often seen resting along the shore, they leap into the water when approached and they yelp "eeeeeepppp"

- breed in semi-permanent or permanent freshwater. They breed from April to August

- Males call to defend their territories. Their call sounds like a plunked banjo string

- Fertilization takes place in the water where the eggs and sperm are released and then the sperm chases those eggs. It is a fun little game

- A single egg clutch may consist of 1000 to 7000 eggs, which may be attached to submerged vegetation

- Green frog tadpoles are olive green and iridescent creamy-white below

- Metamorphosis can occur within the same breeding season or tadpoles may overwinter to metamorphose the next summer. Males become sexually mature at 1 year, females may mature in either 2 or 3 years

- Green frogs will attempt to eat mouth-sized animals they can capture which are: insects, spiders, fish, crayfish, shrimp, other frogs, tadpoles, small snakes, spiders, birds, and snails