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Frogs and Toads of Rhode Island

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Frogs and Toads of Rhode Island FROG & TOAD Chug-o-rum! Peep-peeep-peeep! Kraack-arrack! Frogs and toads thrive in the many ponds, forests , felds and open woodlands found on Audubon wildlife refuges. Spring and summer are great times to look and listen for them. Listed below are the common species found in Rhode Island. Bullfrog Northern Leopard Frog (Rana catesbeiana) (Rana pipiens) Bullfrogs are the largest frog in the United States Leopard frogs, as their name implies, are covered and have smooth, dull green to brown skin with in many, round black spots with lighter outlines. dark spots. Males have a yellow chin, and females Teir base color is usually brown or green but can have a white chin. Males make a deep echoing vary into yellow or blue. Tey have raised, golden croak “Chug-o-rum, Chug-o-rum” call in early ridges running down their back. Tey can be found summer. It can sound like a cow mooing, which in meadows and grasslands in the warmer months is why the word “bull” is in its name. Tey eat and near ponds and streams during breeding season. many insects, but will also eat fsh, rodents and Teir calls sound like a mix of “chucks” and “old small birds. creaky door” sounds. Green Frog Pickerel Frog (Rana clamitans) (Rana palustris) Green frogs greatly resemble bullfrogs, with a bright Nearly the twin of the leopard frog, pickerel green head and shoulders and hints of brown, blue or frogs are distinguished by their spots being black, but can be distinguished by the raised ridges square shaped rather than round and a bright down their backs. Tey sound like the twanging of a yellow/orange ‘fash’ color on the insides of banjo string. Tere can be one or a series of plunks. their hind legs. Tey prefer wet meadows, When frightened, they emit a high-pitched “EEP” to bogs and woodland habitat. Teir call is also startle predators. Green frogs like water insects and similar to the Leopard frog, with a variety those fying just above the surface like dragonfies. of “chucks” and “old creaky door” sounds. Wood Frog American Toad (Rana sylvatica) (Bufo americanus) Wood frogs are a medium-sized frog with a dark Tese stout creatures are a true toad, with short, “face mask” which makes it easy to identify them. hopping legs; dry, brown, bumpy skin and large Females are reddish-brown, and males are greenish- parotid glands behind their eyes that exude toxins brown. Te call of a wood frog is ofen compared when harassed by predators. American toads are with the sound of a quacking duck: “kraack-arrack.” largely terrestrial, preferring open woodlands and Males infate their armpits rather than their throats short grassy areas. Tey will come to ponds and when vocalizing. Tis frog can freeze solid in winter vernal pools in the spring to lay eggs. Teir high- then thaw out in spring! Tese frogs live in the woods pitched rolling trill can be heard in April during most of the year, thus their name. mating season. Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer) Fowler’s Toad Spring peepers are quite tiny –only ¾ to 1 inch (Bufo fowleri) long. Tese chorus frogs are gray to light brown Tese toads look quite similar to the with an “X” on their back. Despite their size, abundant American Toad, but they have they have an extremely loud, high trilling pond many additional ‘warts’ that occur in chorus in early spring that sounds like “Peep- groups of 3 to 5, surrounded by a black peeep-peeep”. Lacking the toe pads of a true tree border. Teir call is an explosive, screaming frog, peepers can be found occupying shrubs “WAAAHH.” and small trees up to six feet of the ground. Gray Tree Frog Eastern Spadefoot Toad (Hyla versicolor) (Scaphiopus holbrookii) Eastern Gray Tree frogs are masters of Tis beautiful but elusive creature is seldom seen. camoufage. Teir smooth skin resembles Tey spend much of their time underground. Tey patches of lichen and moss. On the underside use the hardened, crescent shaped growths on their of their legs, they are a vibrant yellow color hind legs to corkscrew their way into the soil. Tey and have enlarged sticky pads on each toe that are small and plump and have startling bright yellow/ helps them cling to the bark of trees. Tey green eyes. Tey emerge in early spring during heavy produce a chitering trill call in mid-spring to rains and powerful thunder storms to breed in short- early summer. Tey live in trees almost their lived pools. Teir call is a loud downward “WAAHH” whole lives. that makes them sound terribly disappointed. Audubon Society of Rhode Island 401-949-5454 | www.asri.org.
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