Animal Unique | Northern Leopard Frog | The Northern Leopard Frog is a species of leopard frog of the true frog family, from parts of Canada and the United States. It is the state amphibian of Minnesota and Vermont. The leopard frog is called that because it is seen as a leopard. This was once the most common frog species in North America. But since the 1960s, the population here and in the United States declined. Northern Leopard Frog are found in permanent ponds, swamps, marshes and slow moving streams in the forest, open and urban areas. They usually inhabit waters with much vegetation. They are well adapted to the cold.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Ranidae
Genus: Rana
Species: R. pipiens
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Ranidae
Genus: Rana
Species: R. pipiens
Northern Leopard Frog is a fairly large species of frog to about 11 cm in length. It ranges from green to brown in color with large dorsal dark round spots on its back, sides and legs. Each spot is usually surrounded by a ring lighter. A pair of dorsolateral folds from the back of the eye parallel to each other on the back. The dorsolateral folds are often lighter or occasionally pink. There is also a light stripe running from the nostril under the eye and the tympanum, ending at the shoulder. The ventral surface is white or pale green. The iris is golden and toes are webbed. Tadpoles are dark brown or gray with light spots on the underside. The tail is pale tan.
Northern Leopard Frog has different color variations. The most common are the green and the brown morph morph. There is another morph known as the burnsi morph. People with color morph burnsi lack of spots on their backs, but may or may not keep them on their legs. They can be bright green or brown and have yellow dorsal folds. Northern Leopard Frog has a long, deep snoring of a few seconds and ending with a chuckle (Chuck-Chuck-chuck). They eat a wide variety of animals, including crickets, flies, worms and small frogs. Using their large mouth, they can even swallow birds and garter snakes. Northern Leopard Frogs are preyed upon by many animals such as snakes, raccoons, other frogs and even people. They do not produce distasteful skin secretions and rely on speed to evade predation.This species is similar to the Pickerel frog and the Southern Leopard Frog.
Leopard frogs do not mate until the age of two to three. In late April, male frogs begin calling to attract females.Females to more than 6000 eggs can vary from submerged egg masses in the northern part of the population on a surface film of eggs in the south of the population to explain. The black eggs on aquatic plants. In early August, the young frogs from the water to feed on land. Leopard frogs frogs are known for middle and high school biology students. These frogs are often found in biology books and laboratories. Part of Minnesota leopard frogs have no spots. They are called Burnsi leopard frogs.
Northern Leopard Frog is a popular species for in vitro experiments in muscle physiology and biomechanics due to the ease of accessibility for researchers in the original range and the ability of the sartorius to stay alive in vitro for several hours. Moreover, the dependence of the frog in two major forms of movement (jumping and swimming) makes it possible to understand how muscle properties contribute to organismal performance in each of these modes. Northern Leopard Frog is a favorite species for making discoveries about basic properties of neurons since the 1950s. The neuromuscular junction of the sciatic nerve fibers of the sartorius of the frog is the source of much of the first data on the nervous system
Animal Unique