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The SoutheasternUnited Statesis renownedfor its diversityof amphibians.
This guide introducesthe commonfrogs,
toads and salamandersthat inhabit the
CumberlandPlateauaround Sewanee.
Although largeranimalssuchasbirds and
mammals are more likely to attract our
attention. in terms of biomass our area
containsmany moreamphibiansthanany
other vertebrateanimal. The springtime
chorusesof frogs and toadsgive us a hint
of the abundanceof theseanimals.One
can encountermany more by exploring
damp areasin the woods,or by scanning
the ground after heavy rains. Despite
worldwidedeclinesin amphibianpopulations, the CumberlandPlateaustill has
largenumbersof amphibians,andwe hope
that this guide will introduceyou to some
of thesefascinatinganimals.
For moreinformationon thesespecieswe
recommendtheReptilesand Amphibians
guidein the Petersonseries.
BIODIVERSITYON THE MOUNTAIN
THE SEWANEEHERBARIUM
DEPARTMENT
OFBIOLOGY
THEUNIVERSITY
OFTHESOUTI-I
SEI{AT.{EE
The Uniaasity of thc South
The Biodiversityon the Mountainseriesis produced
by the Biology Departmentof the Universityof the
South.This guidewas writtenby David Haskelland
please
or comments,
GeoffWest.If you havequestions
call931598 I918.or [email protected].
F""gu lfr.J.
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Frogsandtoadsaremaste6ofdisguise,oftenchanging
colorto matchth€irsurroundings
andhidingdeepin vegetation.
Althoughl'e rarelyseetheseanimals,
frog andtoadeggscanbese€nthroughout
theircallsarcconspicuous
anddistinctive.In addi':ion,
tbesummerTheeggs,like thecalls,differmarkedlyfrom
intothr€ecolumns:
noteson lhenaturalhistoryofeachspecies,
species
to spe.ies.Thisguideis organized
thenadescription
a description
ofeachspecies'call,
of theeggs.
Natural Histom
CaUs
toadsfrom frogs.You can't get wartsfrom a
American Toad. Dry, "warty" skin distinguishes
chemicalto deterpredators.
Toadsroamfar from
toad,but the "warts"producea nasty-tasting
waysmakethesevery commonanimalsa gardener'sbestfriend.
waterandtheirinsect-eating
A sweet,musicaltrill lastingfor many Longstrings.
Eggsin single,
seconds.
uncrowdedrows.
Eggs
Fowler's Toad. Although this common toad looks very similar to the American toad (it has three A nasal,sheep-like"waraa"
or more warts in each dark spot on its back, the American has only two), its call is different.
Fowler's tend to be found close to water.
Long strings.Eggsmay be crowdedin
doublerowswithinthestrine.
A very low, booming,reionanttwoBullfrog. These huge frogs eat other frogs, small snakesand salamanders.They have been
introduced into many areasby humans, resulting in the decline of other aquatic species.Common, or three-syllabledgroan.
but usually found only near deep water..
A surface film of loosejelly
containinghundredsof tiny eggs.
Pickerel Frog. This frog has parallel rows ofsquare blotchesalong its back and can be found
near lakes, streamsand swamps.
Short.low creak like an )ld boot or
door.
A firm. round cluster. two to four
inches across.
Green Frog. and the leopard frog (see below) are common speciesfound wherever there is
shallow water and around lakes. Both speciesare green with spotted backs and stripey legs. The
leopard frog, however, has a long light line along its upperjaw.
Like a pluckedbanjostr:ngor rubber Tiny black and white eggs are found
band.Sharp"EEEK" cai,asthey
in groups of 15-25 in a surfacefilm.
jump intothewater.
Southern Leopard Frog. Seegreenfrog.
Short "crreak" combinet with hoarse
chuckline.
Northern Cricket Frog. Theseinch-longfrogslive in plantcoverat the water'sedgeandcanbe Metallic"ick, ick,ick" r:pidly
repeated.
heardcallingin theday aswell asat night.Common.
A firm irregularcluster.
Eggs laid singly, attachedto
vegetation.
aroundshallowwatereveryspringandareoneof
Upland Chorus Frog. Thesefrogscongregate
theearliestfrogsto startcallingeachspring.Common.
"Cmeep". Like runninga fingernail
alongtheteethof a plastc comb.
Loose,irregularclusterlessthanan
inch across.
Spring PeeperCall from early springto midsummer.Largenumbersof peeperscan producean
impressively
loud display.Sometimes
alsoheardbriefly in the fall. Theseinch-longfrogshave
the shapeof a crosson theirbacks.Common.
notr; repeated
Single,high-pitched
sound
abouteverysecond.Gro,.rps
like ringingbells.
Singleeggsattached
to submerged
vegetation.
Gray Treefrog.Thesefrogscall throughoutthesummer.Theyoftencall from treesor shrubs
awayfrom water,so canbe heardall overtown aswell asin the forest.Theychangecolorto
Common.
matchtheirsurroundings.
A trilling"crrrok".Speeloftrill
dependson thetemperatlre:hot
nishtsmeanfastcroaks!
Tiny brownandcreameggsin groups
of 10-20in a surfacefilm on pools
andpuddles.
Eastern Spadefoot Toad. Spadefootsspend most of their lives buried in the soil, coming out to
breed after heavy rains. The "spade" (a small protuberanceon their legs) allows them to dig
rapidly into the soil. Uncommon.
Shortcoughor grunt.
Submerged.
sediment-covered
strings.
They havea fold of skin on their
EasternNarrowmouth Toad. Inch-longandvery secretive.
headswhich theycanmoveforwardto wipe ants(a favoritefood item)off theireyes.
Uncommon.
A lamb-like "baaaa", less harsh than
the more frequently heard call of the
Fowler's Toad.
Eggslie in a surfacefilm andlook
like glassmarbles.
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JAIArna"n(]lers
There are three families of salamanders
on the mountain.The newtsor Salamandridae
are representedby just one species,the very
common Red-spottednewt.Thereare tenspecies in the Iunglesssalamanderfamily, or
Plethodontidae.These salamandersinhabit
woodlandsand streamsand exchangegases
t hr oug h th e i r mo i s t, p e rme a b l es k i n. The
Ambystomidaefamily containsthe mole salamanders.These colorful salamandersare
rather large and spendmost of their lives underground,coming out only to breed.Unless
otherwisenoted, all adult salamandersare
about 6-l0cm long.
S.l.*.oJ"iJtt
The adult form of the Eastern Red-spotted Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) lives
in streamsand lakes.Newts tastebad, so are
among the few salamandersthat can live in
lakes with fish. The adults are yellowishbrown to dark brown. The back and belly are
markedwith smallblackspots.The newtshave
an interestinglife cycle: they are aquaticfor
l-3 yearsin a larval form, then they become
land-dwelling"red efts" for a few years,then
return to the water again to breed.Red efts are
orange-redand have bright red dots on their
backs and are often seen in the forest after
rains.
Pl.tLoJor,tiJu"
Most salamandershavean aquaticlarval
stagewhich metamorphoses
into a semi-terrestrial or terrestrialadult. The Slimy Salamander (Plethodonglutinosus)and the Zigzag Safamander (Plethodon do rsalis), how ever,Iay their eggsin moist areason land.The
larval stageand metamorphosistake place
within the egg,so thesespeciesdo not require
water for breeding.Most salamandersare
slightlyslimy,but Slimy Salamanders
are the
and
Kings
slimelThey
of
very
hard
are
Queens
to hold onto and their slime dries into a hard
gl ue. The sl i me i s presumabl ya de f ense
againstpredators.The body is black with silver speckles.TheZigzagSalamanderis found
on rocky slopesand near caves.It has an irregular reddish to yellowish stripe that runs
down its backto its tail.
The N orthern D usky S al ama nder
(Desntognathusfttcus) is brown with black
mottling and has a light Iine extendingfrom
its eye to its mouth. Northern Dusky Salamandersare found in streantsor under rocks.
Thesesalamanders
havelarge,stronghind legs
which theyuseto run andjump whendisturbed
by predators.They also have stiffened lower
jaws and opentheir mouthsby lifting the top
of theirheads.This stiff lowerjaw helpsthem
push their way under rocks and through the
soil. They dependon streamsand pools for
breeding.Becausethey lack the noxiousskin
secretions
of newts,Dusky Salamanders
cannot breedin watersthat contain fish.
The Green S al amander (A ne ides
aeneus)is a cliff-dweller. It can be seen on
rock faces (and occasi onal l yon frees or
porches)afteraheavyrain.This beautifulsalamanderis black with metallicgreenpatches
andhassuctionpadson its toes.The toeshclp
i t cl i mb up cl i ffs.
will love the TennesNativeTennesseans
s ee C a v e S a l a ma n d e r (Gy ri n o phi l us
palleucus)which is only found deep inside
caves in SouthernTennesseeand Northern
Alabama.Its body is paleblueor pink, and its
eyes have beenreducedto dark spots.It usuout of its aquatic
ally doesnot metamorphose
larval stage,and hencehaslargefeatherygills
throughout its life. The reproductiveorgans
developinsidethe "larval" body.This species
was first describedby E. McCrady, a former
Vice-Chancellor
of theUniversityof the South.
Both the Mud Salamander (Pseudotritott
m ont a n u s ) a n d th e N o rth e rn R e d S al amander (Pseudotiton ruber) are red with
black spots.The black spotson the Northern
Red are inegular and run together,the spots
on Muds are distinctand circular.The Mud
hasbrown eyes,andthe Red hasyellow eyes.
Both thesesalamanders
areratherstockyand
short-leggedand their colorsfade from brilliantredto murkybrownastheyage.The Mud
Salamander
doeslive in muddylocationsand
will burrow into the mud if disturbed.The
livesin woodlands
NorthernRedSalarnander
and streams.
The Ttvo-lined Salamander (Eurygga
bislineata)hasa broad,yellow bandrunning
down the back to the tail. The band is borderedon either side by a black stripe.Both
the larvaeandtheadultsof thesesalamanders
live in streams.Adults lay their eggson the
streambed and will staywith them to defend
them from predatorssuchas fish or crayfish.
Lo n g -ta i l e d Sa l a m a n d e r (E u rycea
longicouda)is aptly named:its slendertail is
muchlongerthanits body.Thesesalarnanders
arc yellow to bright red-orangcandaremarked
with scattcredblack spotswhich eventually
t ur n in to d i s ti n c tb a rso n th e ta i l .T h e scsal anranders
live in vacatedcicadaholesandwood
pilcs in darlp areas.Like rlost salanranders,
thisspccies eatssnlrll earthwormsandinsects.
Unlike the TennesseeCave Salamander,the
more common Cave Salamander (Eurycea
lucifuga) is terrestrial and found at the entrancesofcaves.This speciesis bright orange
above and covered with jet black speckles.
They areexcellentclimbersand usetheir tails
like monkevsas thev climb aroundthe rocks.
A-Lsrto-iJ."
The Marbled Salamander (Ambystoma
opacum) is the smallestof the two ambystomas found in Sewanee(9-13 cm long). It is
dark gray or black above with bold silvery
This salamander
crossbands.
canbe found near
ponds, streams,and woodlands and breeds
during the fall. Femaleslay their eggs in depressionsin the ground which will later fill
with water, inducing hatching.The larvae
overwinter in the pools and will sometimes
feaston the smallerlarvaeof the SpottedSalamanderwhen theseemergefrom their eggsin
the spring.
The Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma
maculatunt)is black abovewith two irregular
rows of round, bright yellow or orangespots
(15-25cm long).Thesesalamanders
are usually only seenafter the first warm rain in February when they emergefrom underthe ground
to congregatein great numbersat temporary
pools of water.They mate,then lay eggscontained in large (fist-sized)jelly masses.The
larvae take many months to develop and
emergefrom the pools in late summer.