Field Guide

The green frog looks similar to a bullfrog but is smaller and has a ridge of skin along the sides of the back that is not found on bullfrogs. It is a game animal in Missouri.

The northern leopard frog is a medium-sized frog with dark spots on the back. Two skin folds run down each side of the back. In Missouri, it only occurs in our northwestern counties.

A medium-sized spotted frog, the plains leopard frog is found in pastures, prairies, and marshes. The ridge of skin along each side of the back is broken, and a small hind section of it is shifted upward. It is not present in the Ozarks.

A very secretive species, the northern crawfish frog spends most of its time hidden burrows, typically those made by crayfish. It is restricted to native prairie or former prairie areas and is a species of conservation concern in Missouri.

The western narrow-mouthed toad has a plump body, small pointed head, and a fold of skin behind the eyes. It is typically uniform in color, ranging from tan to gray or olive green, and it has a white belly. In our state is is reported from far western Missouri and east along the Missouri River as far as the center of the state.

Unlike other true toads in Missouri, the Great Plains toad has a raised hump (called a “boss”) between the eyes on the snout. Look for it along the Missouri River floodplain, from the Iowa border to about Hermann.

With its stout body and thick forearms, the rare Illinois chorus frog may at first appear more like a toad. It lives in open, sandy areas that were formerly sand prairie grasslands and wetlands of southeastern Missouri.

The upland chorus frog is a small gray or tan frog with dark dorsal stripes that are narrow or broken into a series of dashes or spots. In Missouri, it occurs only in the southeastern portion, including the southeastern Ozark Highlands as well as the Mississippi Alluvial Basin.

Blanchard's cricket frog is a nonclimbing member of the treefrog family. It lacks the adhesive toe pads associated with treefrogs. It occurs statewide. The call is a metallic “gick, gick, gick.”

More often heard than seen, the boreal chorus frog calls with a vibrating “prrreeep” that rises in pitch at the end. It lasts one or two seconds and sounds like a fingernail scratched over the teeth of a pocket comb. It occurs nearly statewide, except for the southeastern quarter.