The upland chorus frog (''Pseudacris feriarum'') is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of chorus frog found in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It was recently separated from the

Western chorus frog The western chorus frog (''Pseudacris triseriata''), also known as striped chorus frog, or midland chorus frog is a species of frog found in Canada and the United States. Description Western chorus frogs are small , smooth skinned, and greenis ...

(''Pseudacris triseriata''), being identified as an individual species rather than a

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

. They are a rarely seen species, but their calls are frequently heard soon after rains in the spring time.

Habitat

Within their range, this species is found in a variety of habitats that include: swampy areas of broad valleys, grassy swales, moist areas of woodlands and borders of heavily vegetated ponds.

Description

Upland chorus frogs are usually

brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...

grey Grey (more frequent in British English) or gray (more frequent in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning that it has no chroma. It is the color of a cloud-covered s ...

-brown, or

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

dish-brown in color, with darker blotching. They grow from 0.75–1.5 inches (1.9–3.8 cm) in size. A white line is present on the head, above the upper lip. Dorsally, there are 3 longitudinal lines which may be complete or broken into spots and a triangular spot on the head usually connects with the middle stripe.

Geographic distribution

Found in the southern and eastern United States, the upland chorus frog is found from the state of

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

to the

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

panhandle; west to eastern

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and southeast

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

. In West Virginia their distribution is limited to the eastern panhandle and Ridge and Valley region where they are very rare and imperiled.

Behavior

Upland chorus frogs are secretive, freeze-tolerant,

nocturnal Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatur ...

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order (biology), order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough ski ...

s, and are rarely seen (or heard) except immediately after rains. Their chorus will vary depending on the area they are found within, because they have significantly different pulse patterns in many different locations across their distribution. They are an almost entirely terrestrial species, and found in a variety of habitats, but usually moderately moist, vegetated areas, not far from a permanent water source. Like most frogs, they are

insectivorous A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant which eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects. The first vertebrate insectivores we ...

. Breeding occurs throughout the year, but most frequently during the cooler, more rainy periods from November to March.

Eggs An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo begins to develop. Egg, EGG or eggs may also refer to: Biology * Egg cell, the female reproductive cell (gamete) in oogamous organisms Food * Eggs as food Places * Egg, Austria * Egg, Switzerland ...

are laid in clusters of 60 or so, and females will lay 197–835 eggs (average 441.314 ± 50.26). Breeding sites are typically small temporary pools and puddles in grassy fields; they do not breed in permanent water. The female can lay upwards of 1,000 eggs at a time. The egg period lasts from 3–17 days, followed by a larval period of 5.1 weeks.

Conservation status

The upland chorus frog is listed as a protected species in the state of New Jersey, primarily due to

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

. Because of its restrictive habitat preferences, this species is declining in several states, particularly in areas where roadside ditches and other ephemeral pools are being drained or destroyed for new developments.

References

* Database entry includes a range map and a brief justification of why this species is of least concern.
IUCN RangeMap: ''Pseudacris feriarum''Virginia Department of Game & Inland Fisheries: Upland Chorus Frog

External links

Brazos Bend State Park: Flora and Fauna / Amphibians / Upland Chorus Frog
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2750051 Chorus frogs Amphibians of the United States Frogs of North America Fauna of the Northeastern United States Fauna of the Southeastern United States Ecology of the Appalachian Mountains Amphibians described in 1854 Taxa named by Spencer Fullerton Baird