Frogs and Toads of Ijams
Ijams Nature Center is an amphibian paradise. Every spring, the nature center rings with songs from spring peepers, chorus frogs, and tree frogs. This diversity of frogs and toads indicates that Ijams' water quality is very good. Learn about one of the most widespread frogs at Ijams, and see a list of all possible species found here.
Green Frog
IDENTIFICATION
A green frog’s legs have dark bands across them, and the skin is yellowish or white below the bands. Males usually have a bright yellow throat. The tympanum (visible external ear on the side of its head) is large. A male’s tympanum is much larger than its eye, while a female’s is the same size as its eye. The green frog has a well-defined back ridge that starts from the back of the eye and continues down the length of its body.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Green frogs are found in a wide variety of habitats that surround most inland waters, including swamps, wooded swamps, ponds, lakes, marshes, bogs, banks of slow-moving rivers and streams, sloughs, and impoundments. Young frogs may disperse into wooded areas or meadows when it rains. Green frogs hibernate in the mud at the bottom of a body of water during the winter.
LOCATION
Green frogs are abundant in the Lotus Pond at the bottom of North Cove Trail, and can be found anywhere there is standing water at Ijams. They are very common in late spring and early summer, when their calls can be heard echoing over the ponds.
IMPORTANCE
The green frog is one of the largest amphibians at Ijams and is an important food source for birds, mammals, and reptiles. Recently, someone inappropriately released goldfish in the Lotus Pond. These fish eat the frogs’ eggs and tadpoles, which reduces the frog population. Ijams is working to remove the goldfish from the pond.
Species Seen at Ijams
Have you seen a frog or toad that isn't on the following list? Add your sighting to the Ijams iNaturalist page.