Peoria Zoo

Lakes, farm ponds, floodplain sloughs, cattail marshes, or bald cypress swamps.

Native to the eastern half of the United States and Canada

Nocturnal

The male has a large prominent tympanum and a yellow throat in contrast to the female's white throat and smaller eardrum. Dorsolateral ridges are prominent in contrast to the Bullfrog whose dorsolateral ridges are absent. Contrary to its name, it can be found in various colors (bronze, brown, and light green) depending on its habitat region. Some rare individuals are blue.

The Green Frog ranges from 2-4 inches long. Males are usually smaller than females.

Solitary

Frogs in captivity live to be 10 years old. The average lifespan in the wild is unknown

Green frogs will consume anything that can fit in its mouth, such as: crickets, flies, fish, crayfish, shrimp, grasshoppers, smaller frogs, tadpoles, small snakes, birds, mollusks, moths, and their own cast skin. Tadpoles consume algae and water plants.

The female will lay a clutch size of between 1000-7000 eggs. The tadpole stage lasts about 1 year, then they metamorphose into frogs that measure between 1-1.5 inches. During breeding season, males emit a throaty staccto “unck” that sounds like plucking a loose banjo string.

The current consensus among biologists is that Green frogs do not seem to have as much of an impact on a native frog species as Bullfrogs do. Green frogs are smaller and less aggressive than bullfrogs. However, Green frogs do compete with native frogs for food and habitat, and there is a risk that this extra pressure may be a final straw for some native populations. Some of the frog's population could be down because the loss of natural shoreline vegetation. Green frogs are protected by the law in some states. Considered least concern on the IUCN Red List and is listed on "Appendix II" in CITES.

Males
use calls to advertise and defend territories.