Chiricahua leopard frog

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Chiricahua leopard frog
Chiricahua leopard frog 01.jpg
Status TNC G3.svg
Vulnerable  (NatureServe) [2]
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Ranidae
Genus: Lithobates
Species:
L. chiricahuensis
Binomial name
Lithobates chiricahuensis
Platz & Mecham, 1979
Synonyms
  • Rana chiricahuensis
  • Lithobates fisheri
  • Lithobates subaquavocalisPlatz, 1993

The Chiricahua leopard frog (Lithobates chiricahuensis syn. Rana chiricahuensis) [3] is a species of frog in the family Ranidae, the true frogs.

Contents

Distribution and habitat

It is native to Mexico and the United States (Arizona and New Mexico). Its natural habitats are temperate forests, rivers, intermittent rivers, swamps, freshwater lakes, intermittent freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, ponds, and open excavations.

Conservation

It is threatened by habitat loss and chytrid fungus to such an extent that it has been eliminated from 80% of its former habitat. [4] The Phoenix Zoo, Arizona's Department of Game and Fish, and the USFWS are trying to mitigate threats through captive breeding and reintroduction efforts. [5]

Phylogeny

A 2011 genetic analysis provided evidence that the northwestern Mogollon Rim population of L. chiricahuensis is indistinguishable from specimens of the extinct Vegas Valley leopard frog (Lithobates fisheri). [6]

The Ramsey Canyon leopard frog (Lithobates subaquavocalis) has also been shown to be conspecific with the Chiricahua leopard frog.


Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leopard frog</span> Common name of several species of amphibian

Leopard frog is a generic name used to refer to various species in the true frog genus Lithobates. They all have similar coloration: brown or green with spots that form a leopard pattern. They are distinguished by their distribution and behavioral, morphological, and genetic differences. The range of the various species of leopard frogs extends from the Hudson Bay in Canada, throughout the United States, throughout Mexico and other parts of Central America, and possibly the very northern section of South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

Lithobates pipiens or Rana pipiens, commonly known as the northern leopard frog, is a species of leopard frog from the true frog family, native to parts of Canada and the United States. It is the state amphibian of Minnesota and Vermont.

<i>Rana</i> (genus) Genus of amphibians

Rana is a genus of frogs commonly known as the Holarctic true frogs, pond frogs or brown frogs. Members of this genus are found through much of Eurasia and western North America. Many other genera were formerly included here. These true frogs are usually largish species characterized by their slim waists and wrinkled skin; many have thin ridges running along their backs, but they generally lack "warts" as in typical toads. They are excellent jumpers due to their long, slender legs. The typical webbing found on their hind feet allows for easy movement through water. Coloration is mostly greens and browns above, with darker and yellowish spots.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

Lithobates sphenocephalus or Rana sphenocephala, commonly known as the southern leopard frog, is a medium-sized anuran in the family Ranidae. It is native to eastern North America from Kansas to New York to Florida. It is also an introduced species in some areas. This species lives in cool, clear water in the north, whereas in the south it occurs in warmer turbid and murky waters of coastal and floodplain swamps, twilight zones of caves, and abandoned mines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plains leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

The Plains leopard frog is a spotted frog found in North America. It is sometimes referred to as Blair's leopard frog, named after the noted zoologist and University of Texas professor, Dr. W. Frank Blair.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rio Grande leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

The Rio Grande leopard frog is a species of aquatic frog native to the southern United States in Texas and New Mexico, and south through Mexico and Central America. It is also sometimes referred to as the Mexican leopard frog. The epithet berlandieri is in honor of the naturalist Jean Louis Berlandier, who worked for the Mexican government on one of the first biological surveys of Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vegas Valley leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

The Vegas Valley leopard frog, also known as the Las Vegas leopard frog, is an extinct species of frog. It once occurred in the Las Vegas Valley, as well as Tule Springs, Clark County, southern Nevada in the United States, at elevations between 370 and 760 m. It was believed to be the only frog endemic to the United States to have become extinct in modern times.

<i>Lithobates</i> Genus of amphibians

Lithobates is a genus of true frogs, of the family Ranidae. The name is derived from litho- (stone) and the Greek bates, meaning one that treads on rock, or rock climber.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gopher frog</span> Species of amphibian

The gopher frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae, endemic to the south-eastern United States. It primarily inhabits the threatened sandhill communities, flatwoods, and scrub in the Atlantic coastal plain, where it is usually found near ponds.

The Patzcuaro frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae. Within the former, broadly defined genus Rana, it belongs to the Rana montezumae subgroup of the Rana pipiens complex. It is endemic to the Michoacán state, Mexico, where it is locally known as rana de Pátzcuaro. It occurs in Lake Pátzcuaro, Lake Cuitzeo, and the surrounding streams in Río de Morelia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forrer's grass frog</span> Species of amphibian

Forrer's grass frog or Forrer's leopard frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae found in Mexico and Central America through Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua to Costa Rica. It is a widespread and common frog found in lowland and seasonal tropical forests. It can also adapt to man-made habitats such as flooded agricultural lands and other water content systems. Reproduction requires permanent pools and lagoons.

Moore's frog is a species of frog in the true frog family (Ranidae). It is endemic to the Sierra Madre Oriental of Mexico.

The Maya Mountains frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae found in Belize and possibly Guatemala. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, moist savanna, and rivers. This anuran is found primarily in the Mayan Mountain region between 100m and 915m of elevation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Relict leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

The relict leopard frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae, endemic to the United States. It is found along the Colorado river in extreme northwestern Arizona, and adjacent Nevada and southwestern Utah, although its present range seems to be restricted to the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Its natural habitat is freshwater springs and their outlets. It is threatened by habitat loss to agriculture and water development as well as invasive species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Showy leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

The showy leopard frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae endemic to Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tlaloc's leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

Tlaloc's leopard frog, or rana de Tláloc in Spanish, is a species of frog in the family Ranidae endemic to the Valley of Mexico. It is most likely extinct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vaillant's frog</span> Species of amphibian

Vaillant's frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae found in Central America. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical swamps, rivers, swamps, freshwater lakes, intermittent freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, rural gardens, heavily degraded former forests, water storage areas, ponds, and canals and ditches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lowland leopard frog</span> Species of amphibian

The lowland leopard frog is a species of frog in the family Ranidae that is found in Mexico and the United States.

References

  1. Georgina Santos-Barrera, Geoffrey Hammerson, Michael Sredl (2004). "Lithobates chiricahuensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2004: e.T58575A11805575. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T58575A11805575.en . Retrieved 16 November 2021.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  3. Frost, Darrel (2011). "American Museum of Natural History: Amphibian Species of the World 5.5, an Online Reference". Herpetology. The American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 2013-02-17.
  4. Ellis, R. (2004). No Turning Back: The Life and Death of Animal Species . New York: Harper Perennial. p.  187. ISBN   978-0-06-055804-8.
  5. Phoenix Zoo marks restoration of 10,000th frog to the wild. National Geographic (September 1, 2010).
  6. Hekkala, Evon R.; Saumure, Raymond A.; Jaeger, Jef R.; Herrmann, Hans-Werner; Sredl, Michael J.; Bradford, David F.; Drabeck, Danielle; Blum, Michael J. (2011). "Resurrecting an extinct species: Archival DNA, taxonomy, and conservation of the Vegas Valley leopard frog". Conservation Genetics. 12 (5): 1379–1385. doi: 10.1007/s10592-011-0229-6 . S2CID   2787707.

Further reading