Florida bog frog

Florida bog frog
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Ranidae
Genus: Rana
Species: R. okaloosae
Binomial name
Rana okaloosae
Moler, 1985
Synonyms
Lithobates okaloosae

The Florida bog frog (Rana okaloosae)[1][2][3][4] is a rare species of frog found only in western Florida.

Distribution

The Florida bog frog inhabits a total area of less than 20 km2 (7.7 mi2). It is found in shallow ponds or creeks along tributaries of the East Bay, Shoal and Yellow Rivers in Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, and Walton Counties in Florida. About 90% of its range lies within Eglin Air Force Base, so the major threat to this species originates from human activity disturbing their natural habitat. However, "US national security has priority over wildlife", and the species showed some tolerance to intrusion.[1]

Description

This species ranges from 34 to 49 mm (1.3 to 1.9 in) in snout to vent length (SVL), with females being a few millimeters larger than males on average. They have no spots on their dorsal surfaces and compared to other North American members of the genus Rana, the webbing between the toes is greatly reduced. They are light green. Males have a yellow throat and larger tympana. Tadpoles are brown with dark spots on the tail and light spots on the ventral surface.[5][6]

The Florida bog frog differs from other American frogs by reduced webbing of their feet – "at least three phalanges of the 4th toe are free of webbing and at least two phalanges of all other toes are free".[7]

Ecology and behavior

This species was unknown to science until the 1980s. Relatively little is known about their reproduction and development. Males call at night, often in areas where bronze frogs (Rana clamitans clamitans) also breed.[8] Females lay several hundred eggs at a time on the surface of shallow, non-stagnant, acidic (pH 4.1–5.5) water during the spring and summer. Tadpoles metamorphose by the next spring.[1]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 Hammerson, Geoffrey; Jackson, Dale; Palis, John and Moler, Paul (2004). Lithobates okaloosae. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2.
  2. ↑ Hillis, D. M. (2007). "Constraints in naming parts of the Tree of Life". Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 42 (2): 331–338. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2006.08.001. PMID 16997582.
  3. ↑ Hillis, D.M. & Wilcox, T.P. (2005). "Phylogeny of the New World true frogs (Rana)" (PDF). Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 34 (2): 299–314. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.10.007. PMID 15619443.
  4. ↑ Pauly, Greg B., Hillis, David M., & Cannatella, David C. (2009). "Taxonomic freedom and the role of official lists of species names" (PDF). Herpetologica 65 (2): 115–128. doi:10.1655/08-031R1.1.
  5. ↑ Moler, P (1993). Rana okaloosae Moler Florida Bog Frog. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles p. 561
  6. ↑ Priestley, A. S., T. A. Gorman, and C. A. Haas. (2010). "Comparative morphology of Rana okaloosae and Rana clamitans clamitans tadpoles" (PDF). Florida Scientist 73: 20–26.
  7. ↑ Al Nasa'a, M' (2003) Rana okaloosae, Animal Diversity Web. Accessed March 10, 2006
  8. ↑ Gorman, T.A., Bishop, D. C. and Haas, C. A. (2009). "Spatial interactions between two species of frogs: Rana okaloosae and R. clamitans clamitans" (PDF). Copeia 2009: 138–141. doi:10.1643/CE-07-258.

Further reading

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