Rana heckscheri
river frog

The river frog can be found in the southeastern portion of the United States. It is found in parts of the following states: Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina (FCES 1999).

The river frog is not limited to rivers as its name may imply. They can also be found in and along lakes, ponds, swamps, streams, and marshes. They prefer open, thinly vegetated shoreline habitats (Bartlett and Bartlett 1999).

The river frog ranges from 3.25 - 4.63 inches in snout-vent length (record length 6.13 inches). The dorsal surface of the frog is a greenish black color. A common field mark is the presence of light spots on the lips; these spots are usually larger on the lower jaw. The skin is more rugose than the skin of most other ranid frogs. The belly ranges from gray to almost black in color, and is marked with light spots or short wavy lines (Conant and Collins 1998). Males often have a yellowish suffusion on the throat. The river frog has no dorsolateral ridges as found in many other ranid frogs. The webbing on the hind feet extend to the last phalanx on the longest toe (Bartlett and Bartlett 1999). Tadpoles of the river frog are rather large, reaching 4 inches before metamorphosis. The tadpoles undergo ontogenetic color changes. Small tadpoles have well-defined light rings around the body, posterior to the eyes, these rings disappear with growth (Bartlett and Bartlett 1999).

The river frog is a highly aquatic frog, but can be approached rather easily. They often sit in shallow open water, and on structures such as logs, where they are highly visible to potential predators (Bartlett and Bartlett 1999).

The river frog feeds largely on insects and other invertebrates; they occasionally take small vertebrate prey, such as other ranid frogs of suitable size.

The river frog does not appear to present any negative attributes concerning the environment or humans.

The river frog are an important species for their aesthetic value, ecological importance, and the consumption of insects, some of which are considered to be pests by humans.

The river frog is still common in areas of the southeastern United States that still have proper habitat. With the preservation of their habitat the river frog should have no problem persisting in the future (Bartlett and Bartlett 1999).

Most frogs will try to flee and escape when captured; this is not the case with the river frog. Instead of trying to escape, the River Frog often will simply go limp and play dead. Another defense mechanism of this frog is to secrete a noxious and odorus substance onto its attacker (USGS 1999).

The tadpoles of the river frog are larger than those of most species, reaching a length of 4 inches before metamorphosis. The tadpoles also organize themselves into schools, which is not common among ranid frogs or among large tadpoles of any kind (Altig 1981). Schooling may be an anti-predator mechanism; i.e., safety in numbers (Bartlett and Bartlett 1999). Another proposed benefit is that schooling creates social facilitation among the tadpoles which is beneficial to their survival (Altig 1981).