Field Guide

The red-eared slider is an attractive aquatic turtle with yellow pinstripes and red ears. It is commonly seen basking on logs or rocks and occurs statewide, except for a few northern counties.

The three-toed box turtle usually has three hind toes. Its high-domed shell usually has a top ridge and is olive or brown with faint yellow or orange lines. Look for it in woodland habitats.

The western painted turtle is a small, brightly colored aquatic turtle. The upper shell is smooth and has a red-orange outer edge. The colorful lower shell has a prominent pattern of brown markings. It is found nearly everywhere in the state except the southeast region.

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.