There are 31 types of frogs in North Carolina. Some species live among the fallen leaves and debris on forest floors, and others live in man-made water sources such as backyard pools and artificial ponds.
Most species prefer to live close to natural water sources such as swamps, marshes, lakes, and ponds.
Most species of frogs hibernate throughout the winter months and like to dwell near water.
When identifying a species, its location, colors, characteristics, and croak can all be helpful clues.
In this post, you will find information and statistics about each species found in North Carolina, which will be useful the next time you stumble across these scaly amphibians.
1. Upland Chorus Frog
- Scientific Name: Pseudacris feriarum
- Size: 0.75 to 1.75 inches
- Average Lifespan: 1 to 5 years
The central region of North Carolina is where one is most likely to come across an Upland chorus frog. Rivers, marshes, swamps, grassy ditches, ponds, transitory wooded areas, and moist wooded areas all have them as residents.
They only come out at night, so we rarely see them. Although they breed throughout the year, these types of frogs in North Carolina are most active when the weather is cold and wet, from November to March.
These frogs typically have rough skin that is brown, red, or greenish-gray in color. They have a dark line that is not clearly defined, running from their snout to their crotch on either side of their body, and they have three rows of spots or solid stripes running down their back.
Above their upper lip, they typically have a white or cream-colored stripe. A diet of small insects and other invertebrates, such as spiders, ants, snails, and beetles, makes up most of an upland chorus frog’s daily food intake.
The sound of the male’s call is analogous to the noise made by a comb when one runs one’s finger along the bristles. Their distinctive chorus is one of the best ways to tell them apart from the southern chorus frog.
2. Brimley’s Chorus Frog
- Scientific Name: Pseudacris brimleyi
- Size: 1 to 1.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 1 to 3 years
The Brimley’s Chorus Frog inhabits grasslands, pastures, meadows, lawns, marshes, swamps, ditches, and the borders of woods, among other habitats. The Coastal Plain in North Carolina is the typical location where one might spot them.
These types of frogs in North Carolina are also seen in the areas surrounding artificial ponds, cattle tanks, and canals.
During the breeding season, they stay close to water sources. However, they remain on land the rest of the year and frequently burrow underground when inactive.
The coloration of this species can vary, but it is mostly tan with three stripes that are a somewhat deeper brown running down its back.
They have a black stripe extending from the front of their snout down either side of their body to the back of their thighs.
It is common for the rear legs to exhibit horizontal stripes of a dark brown or even black color. Their chests are often marked with a few brown dots, while their bellies are typically a shade of yellow.
Tiny insects, such as ants, flies, small beetles, and other small invertebrates, make up most of these frogs” diet.
Their breeding season’s exact timing is contingent on their environment’s average temperature, but it often runs from February to early May.
The male typically makes sounds from underneath foliage or partly immersed water. Their call is quick, harsh, and quite similar in sound to the calls of other chorus frogs.
3. Ornate Chorus Frog
- Scientific Name: Pseudacris ornata
- Size: 1 to 1.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 1 to 3 years
The southern portion of North Carolina’s Coastal Plain is home to the Ornate Chorus frog, which inhabits pine stands and savannas.
You can find these types of frogs living in grassy regions, bogs, swamps, and other wet and marshy environments in North Carolina.
Sandhills and pine flatwoods are the most prevalent habitats in which to find them. They give birth in fleeting bodies of water, preferably in grassy marshes devoid of fish.
This species is active at night and is most likely to be spotted during the wetter months of winter. They are extremely elusive and rarely spotted at other times of the year than when they are breeding.
There are many different colors of ornate chorus frogs, but the most common ones are red, brilliant green, gray, and light brown.
They appear to be quite similar to Brimley’s chorus frog. Still, they may be identified from that species by their vivid coloring, and the dark stripe that runs along the back of their bodies is frequently fragmented rather than being a single continuous stripe.
They frequently have yellow markings on the inner of their legs and dark stripes on the rear of their bodies.
These frogs in North Carolina get their nutrition from eating various insects, including spiders, ants, tiny beetles, mites, and flies.
This species makes its call between December and March. The females attach their eggs to the aquatic plants within shallow breeding ponds.
4. Mountain Chorus Frog
- Scientific Name: Pseudacris brachyphona
- Size: 1 to 1.25 inches
- Average Lifespan: 1 to 3 years
Researchers have only documented them a few times, but mountain chorus frogs can only be found in the southwestern region of North Carolina. This is the only place in the state where they reside.
You can discover these types of frogs in North Carolina in streams that run through forested hillside areas, as well as in ditches, shallow ponds, and other similar bodies of water.
They are active throughout the day and night, but because this species is so secretive, it is highly doubtful that you would encounter them out in the open.
These frogs can have a variety of colorations, including brown, gray, and olive green. They feature a design on their dorsal surface that resembles an inverted parenthesis.
They have a striking resemblance to the Pine Woods tree frog in both look and behavior.
A white line distinguishes the mountain chorus frog’s face over its lips, and a dark triangle sits between its eyes. Their call is quick and has a nasal quality, much like a squeaking wagon wheel.
This particular type of frog feeds primarily on ground-dwelling insects, such as ants, tiny beetles, caterpillars, grasshoppers, and spiders, provided they are not too large.
Most of their hunting is done on the ground rather than in trees because they cannot climb very well. Between February and May, reproduction occurs in pools with a short depth.
5. Southern Chorus Frog
- Scientific Name: Pseudacris nigrita
- Size: 0.75 to 1.25 inches
- Average Lifespan: 1 to 3 years
The Coastal Plain of North Carolina has various habitats suitable for the Southern chorus frog, including pine Flatwoods, pine savannas, pine Flatwoods, meadows, and roadside ditches.
Like the eggs of other chorus frogs, their eggs are around plants or other residues in shallow water that do not contain fish.
During the breeding season, they migrate to regions with sandy soil to dig in and then enter shallow water. They like to dwell in areas that have sandy soil.
The males of this species are exceedingly covert, and when they call to one another, they will even conceal in holes or bushes close to the water.
Dark colors, such as brown, gray, greenish-gray, and tan, are typical of these frogs” appearances in the wild.
They typically feature dark patches on their lower backs and hind legs and a dark, thick stripe that runs from the top of their snout to the bottom of their rear legs on either side.
These types of frogs in North Carolina have bellies that are a lighter color and snouts that are somewhat pointed.
Chorus frogs, including Southern chorus frogs, consume small insects and invertebrates like ants, flies, beetles, and spiders for food. This diet is similar to that of other chorus frogs.
January through early April are normal for the duration of their mating season. The mating call of the males sounds like a ratcheting mechanism.
6. Southern Cricket Frog
- Scientific Name: Acris gryllus
- Size: 0.75 to 1.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 5 to 10 years
The Southern cricket frog can thrive in practically any moist habitat but usually in ponds, lakes, and small streams. Its name comes from the sound it makes when it hops.
They are a species that lives in the ground. Even though they are members of the tree frog family, you won’t find them very high up in the trees because they aren’t particularly good climbers.
The skin of southern cricket frogs is rough and wart-covered, and its coloration can range from red to brown to green to gray to black.
They all have a brightly colored stripe that begins at the back of both eyes, forms a triangle at the rear of the head, and then goes down the middle of their backs. They lack toe pads but have lengthy limbs on their backs.
Insects, particularly mosquitoes, make up most of this species’ food. The months of February through early November make up their breeding season. However, the males will continue to call at any time of the year.
The males make a sound like marbles clicking against one another, and they use this to entice females and scare away other males.
This species is known for its high level of aggression; males of this species may battle other males to protect their territory, particularly toward the end of the breeding season when fewer females are available.
7. Northern Cricket Frog
- Scientific Name: Acris crepitans
- Size: 0.75 to 1.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 5 to 10 years
The Northern Cricket Frog is one of the three amphibians that are the tiniest vertebrates in North America. These types of frogs in North Carolina like to set up their homes close to bodies of water that are permanently stagnant and move slowly.
They tend to congregate in huge numbers near the mucky margins of pools and streams with shallow water.
There have been reports that they hibernate inland, quite a distance from any bodies of water. The vegetation along the pond’s edges is an excellent place to look for their eggs.
These frogs can have blotching patterns that are typically erratic and can be a variety of colors, including green, gray, and brown. The skin is rough and bumpy, and the legs have black bands.
In most cases, a white line extends from the eye to the bottom of the foreleg. However, the southern cricket frog has longer legs and less webbing on the back foot, and some individuals have a longer, more pointed snout than the northern cricket frog. The northern cricket frog is very similar to the southern cricket frog.
Cricket frogs in the north are most active during the day and throughout most of the year, except for the winter months when the waterways freeze.
Mosquitoes, flies, mites and small beetles are among the insects that make up their diet. April through August make up their breeding season, and their call sounds like two stones snapping against each other.
8. Pickerel Frog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates palustris
- Size: 1.75 to 3 inches
- Average Lifespan: 5 to 8 years
The only place in North Carolina where you won’t find the pickerel frog is the outskirts of the coastal lowlands.
Adult pickerel frogs thrive in the highlands and along small streams. However, you can also find them in woodland areas and meadows.
These frogs in North Carolina prefer breeding in bodies of water that only exist for a limited period, such as forest pools.
However, they will also breed in permanent water bodies, such as ponds, pools, swamps, streams, rivers, and ditches.
It is easy to confuse these frogs with the southern leopard frog, but you can tell them apart by the larger square-shaped spots placed in two rows parallel to one another.
The undersides of their rear legs can be either orange or yellow. Underneath their dark brown spots, which are usually always present, their color is almost always brown, tan, or golden brown, and their underside is always white.
This species is capable of producing skin secretions that are toxic to a wide variety of animals and that have the potential to cause skin irritation in people.
They eat insects such as ants, tiny beetles, water bugs, and plant lice as their primary food source. Their mating call is similar to low snoring and is typically made while submerged.
9. Carpenter Frog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates virgatipes
- Size: 1.5 to 2.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 3 to 6 years
There are a variety of environments in which carpenter frogs can be found, including bogs, shrub bogs, beaver swamps, pine savanna ponds, Carolina bays, and roadside ditches.
It is common to find them in murky, acidic waters with a substantial amount of sphagnum (a type of moss) and other aquatic plants.
Carpenter frogs are usually a shade of brown or greenish-brown, with two stripes of yellow or orange on either side of their back and two stripes on each side of their bodies. The color of their bellies is often white or pale yellow.
They resemble smaller bullfrogs but are easily distinguishable thanks to the four yellow stripes that run along their back and flanks. Typically, their entire back shows a pattern of tiny black or dark brown patches.
These frogs in North Carolina get their nutrition from aquatic insects such as water striders, crayfish, and spiders.
Although the mating season for carpenter frogs is from the end of December to the beginning of May, you may still hear them calling throughout the majority of the summer.
They communicate with a loud” pa-tan,” similar to the sound of a carpenter’s hammer, which is how they got their popular name.
10. Little Grass Frog
- Scientific Name: Pseudacris ocularis
- Size: 0.75 inches
- Average Lifespan: 5 to 10 years
The smallest species of frog found in North America is called the Little Grass Frog. You could come across them next to temporary ponds or other types of wetlands in the Coastal Plain.
They select grassy, wet settings in which to raise their young. The eggs of these frogs are typically laid on the bottoms of ponds or on top of aquatic plants in rather shallow waters.
This species is so small that it would fit perfectly on the tip of your fingernail. The tiny grass frog has a pointed snout and long front and rear legs, which are longer than its tail.
They can have a variety of colors and patterns, including red, tan, green, or pink. The sole feature that all these frogs share is a thick, dark stripe that runs from the tip of their nose to the side of their body.
The breeding season for this particular species begins in January and continues through September. You can hear their call at any time of the year, but not everyone can hear it due to its high pitch.
Despite their diminutive size, they can leap nearly 1 foot and a half into the air.
11. River Frog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates heckscheri
- Size: 3 to 5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 5 years
Researchers believe that the river frog no longer exists in North Carolina due to the destruction of its habitat.
They spend most of their time in the water, and you may find them in the river systems of Cape Fear in the southeastern part of the Coastal Plain in North Carolina.
Oxbow lakes, ponds, and swamps are common breeding grounds for this species. This species prefers to make its home in areas close to water, such as marshes, rivers, ponds, and lakes.
This particular species is difficult to find in North Carolina. In terms of size, they are the second largest of all frogs.
Although bullfrogs and river frogs may share a similar appearance, river frogs can be distinguished from bullfrogs by their more pointed noses.
Their bodies are generally olive green, tan, or brown, while their bellies are black or gray. It has spots on its back of varying sizes and dark bands on its hind legs. The skin of its body is typically rough and covered in warts.
River frogs consume various water invertebrates and other tiny insects, such as spiders, grasshoppers, ants, and beetles.
They can create a poisonous skin secretion to deter their enemies, and as a result, they are incredibly fearless. Instead of attempting to flee, they will pretend to be dead.
12. Wood Frog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates sylvaticus
- Size: 1.375 to 2.75 inches
- Average Lifespan: 1 to 3 years
In North Carolina, wood frogs can be found almost exclusively on land and throughout most of the state’s mountainous regions and western Piedmont. They choose to live in damp forests as their habitat of choice.
They are more likely to be discovered during the wet evenings near the roadway. During the winter, they congregate in fleeting ponds found in wooded areas to reproduce.
They congregate in high numbers for a breeding frenzy that typically lasts a few days. They do this to help prevent their eggs from freezing by attaching vast numbers of them in enormous clusters to giant sticks or underwater vegetation.
These types of frogs in North Carolina are typically brown or gray, although there have been reports of them also being rosy or pinkish.
They do not have any distinguishing markings; however, they occasionally have little spots scattered throughout their back and a dark brown line that runs under each eye and along the length of their nose. Females are typically larger and more colorful than their male counterparts.
Invertebrates such as spiders, worms, slugs, snails, flies, caterpillars, and beetles are among the insects that wood frogs are known to consume.
When startled, these frogs will run away and seek refuge in the leaf litter or other debris. Their sound has been described as scratchy compared to that of ducks or chickens.
13. American Bullfrog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates catesbeianus (Rana catesbeiana)
- Size: 3.5 to 6 inches
- Average Lifespan: 7 to 15 years
The American bullfrog, also known simply as the bullfrog, is an indigenous animal in the eastern region of the United States.
However, the bullfrog has spread worldwide due to its availability as a food source. The male Bullfrog’s sound during the mating season resembles a bull bellowing, which is how the species received its name.
These frogs build their homes in permanent bodies of water such as lakes, ponds, and swamps and quite frequently in swimming pools and canals.
Bullfrogs are generally active from April through October and enter a state of dormancy during winter.
North Carolina is home to the largest population of this species. They typically have dark patches on their backs and a coloration ranging from brown to brownish green. It has a big head with a big mouth to go along with it.
The necks of males of this species are a brilliant shade of yellow, while the throats of females are white. It has short, stumpy forelegs, but its hind legs are large and robust, and the feet on its hind legs are webbed, which helps it swim fast through the water.
Carnivorous by nature, bullfrogs will consume anything from microscopic insects to snakes, fish, and even other bullfrogs as part of their diet.
Because they are nocturnal, these frogs in North Carolina hunt at night when they are calmly waiting for other tiny animals to cross their path.
When an unlucky creature does happen to come across the path of a bullfrog, the Bullfrog will rush at its target and then utilize its broad mouth to consume it.
14. Spring Peeper
- Scientific Name: Pseudacris crucifer
- Size: 0.75 to 1.25 inches
- Average Lifespan: 2 to 4 years
The Spring peeper is a small chorus frog species usually found in woods and semi-permanent wetlands such as marshes, small ponds, and sometimes swamps.
These habitats are necessary to survive the Springpeeper’s eggs and tadpoles. Male birds chirping is generally the first indication that spring has arrived.
Spring peepers can be brown, tan, olive green, or gray and have cream or white bellies. They typically have a mark on their back that looks like an X, but this marking can sometimes be difficult to see.
Spring peepers also have dark bands on their legs and a dark line between their eyes.
The males are typically smaller and have darker necks and vocal sacs that expand and collapse to generate a chirping noise used as a mating call. Females are lighter in color.
The beetles, ants, flies, and spiders that make up this species” diet make up this species” primary source of nutrition.
They are nocturnal species, meaning they only come out to hunt at night and stay concealed throughout the day.
These frogs spend most of their time in the forest, hibernating during the colder seasons and waiting for spring to arrive. They breed and lay their eggs in the water where they reside.
15. Green Frog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates clamitans
- Size: 2.25 to 3.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 15 to 20 years
Green frogs are true frogs typically found in temporary bodies of water such as ponds, lakes, swamps, streams, and brooks.
They are of medium size and can thrive around these types of freshwater habitats. When given the opportunity, these frogs also enjoy colonizing new, smaller bodies of water, such as swimming pools and man-made ponds.
They are most frequently on the beach, and when they sense anything approaching them, these frogs will immediately dash into the water, where they either descend to the ocean floor or float face up with only their eyes visible.
In general, these types of frogs in North Carolina are green, brownish green, yellowish green, or olive in color.
The front of the frog is brighter than the back, and it has little dark spots across the back, similar to a bullfrog, with the males having a bright yellow neck.
The characteristic dorsolateral ridges that run down the sides of these frogs” back help differentiate them from bullfrogs, even though these frogs are very similar to bullfrogs.
Generally speaking, green frogs are more active during the day, but they can be active at night if the temperature is warm enough.
During April through August, when the temperature is reliably warm, these frogs often reproduce in permanent bodies of water.
Their diets include any small animal that can fit in their mouths, including insects, fish, shrimp, snakes, slugs, other frogs, tadpoles, and other frogs.
16. Gopher Frog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates capito
- Size: 2.5 to 3 inches
- Average Lifespan: 2 to 5 years
The coastal plains are home to a species of frog known as the gopher frog. Since gopher tortoises are uncommon in North Carolina, they will typically conceal themselves among the burrows of other mammals or crayfish.
The breeding process for adult gopher frogs takes place in fish-free semi-permanent and temporary ponds. The breeding season for this species extends from the middle of February to the middle of April.
The skin of an adult gopher frog can be brown, green, or gray and has patches of a darker color. Gopher frogs are of medium size.
Due to the size of their heads and the thickness of their bodies, people often mistake these types of frogs in North Carolina for toads.
Warts are evident on their skin, and a fold of reddish-brown skin runs down each side of their body. They exhibit a vivid yellow or orange color on the undersides of their legs. Adult females often have a bigger body size than males of the same species.
The gopher frog is a nocturnal animal that keeps to itself. They will emerge from their burrows at night to go on nocturnal forays in search of prey, which often consists of insects, including worms, spiders, beetles, crickets, and occasionally other small frogs. These frogs are on the verge of extinction.
17. Atlantic Coast Leopard Frog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates kauffeldi
- Size: 2 to 3.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 2 to 5 years
North Carolina is the location where a previously unknown species, the Atlantic Coast Leopard frog, was found.
These particular species of frogs reside in the state’s far northeast, where they inhabit various wetland settings. They are most likely in wetlands, such as marshes, meadows, and slow-moving bodies of water.
These types of frogs in North Carolina favor living in or around open areas with clear shallow water and aquatic flora as their habitat of choice.
This species’ color can range from light olive green to a minty gray with irregular dark spots. It also has two yellow or tan stripes that run from its snout down its back. Its coloration shifts depending on the time of day and the season.
They can look quite similar to their cousin, the southern leopard frog, but they can be differentiated from each other by their more rounded snouts, the absence of a white patch on their external eardrums, and their mating call, which is a single clear” chuc” sound rather than a repetitive” ak-ak-ak”
The leopard frog will consume practically anything it can get its mouth around. This can include beetles, ants, worms, and flies to more diminutive frogs, birds, and snakes.
The breeding season for leopard frogs along the Atlantic coast is late winter through early spring.
18. Southern Leopard Frog
- Scientific Name: Lithobates sphenocephalus
- Size: 2 to 3.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 2 to 4 years
The environments suitable for southern leopard frogs are a variety of shallow freshwater habitats. Although they sometimes stay near water, they spend most of their time on land.
They are primarily active at night. However, there have been reports of them being active during the day.
The southern leopard frog can be green or brown and has a yellow ridge that runs along either side of its back.
Additionally, the back and legs of this frog have spots of a darker hue. Males typically have more robust front limbs than their female counterparts do.
Their diets consist of different kinds of insects and other invertebrates.
Breeding typically occurs in the winter and early spring, but it can also be triggered by prolonged periods of high rainfall.
When a female lays her eggs, she typically attaches them to a stem or another object below the water’s surface.
19. Pine Woods Tree frog
- Scientific Name: Dryophytes femoralis
- Size: 0.75 to 1.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 2 to 4 years
The Pine Woods tree frog is a species found on the coastal plains. It is a very small species that prefers to live in pine forests, Flatwoods, and cypress swamps. They remain in the branches of the trees but will occasionally come down to the ground.
They like to take refuge beneath rotting logs or in wet holes close to or within trees when the weather is dry or cold.
The coloration of these frogs in North Carolina ranges from reddish-brown to brown to gray to occasionally a dull green color. Their bodies are elongated and proportional to one another.
In appearance, they are quite similar to squirrel tree frogs; however, you can tell them apart by the yellow, orange, or white dots on each thigh’s back.
Insects such as ants, flies, beetles, crickets, and moths are some foods consumed by Pine Woods tree frogs.
Breeding occurs in transitory, shallow pools such as ditches, cypress ponds, or grassland pools for these frogs. Males will vocalize between April and October, particularly at dusk.
20. Pine Barrens Tree frog
- Scientific Name: Dryophytes andersonii
- Size: 1 to 1.75 inches
- Average Lifespan: 2 to 5 years
One of the more diminutive species of tree frogs is the Pine Barrens tree frog. Sandhills in North Carolina are home to numerous populations of these frogs.
It is common to find them in areas close to shallow ponds with a lot of vegetation and ground with lots of moss.
The Pine Barrens tree frog can tolerate acidic environments a lot better than other types of frogs can. They can fertilize their eggs in shallow and acidic ponds.
Tree frogs that live in the Pine Barrens are usually always green in color, and they have huge dark stripes that run from their eyes down their sides.
Additionally, they have orange-gold markings on the inside of their legs. The American green tree frog and these frogs have a very similar appearance; however, you can tell them apart by the wide dark stripes running along their bodies’ sides.
These types of frogs in North Carolina get most of their nutrition from eating invertebrates and insects of a smaller size, such as flies, ants, and beetles. The Pine Barrens tree frog is at risk of being endangered.
21. Cope’s Gray Treefrog
- Scientific Name: Hyla chrysoscelis
- Size: 1 to 1.25 inches
- Average Lifespan: 7 to 10 years
The Cope’s gray tree frog is a species of tree frog that resembles the gray tree frog very closely. They are virtually indistinguishable from one another.
The mating cry of one species is the only distinguishing feature between the two. The cope call is more rapid and has a higher pitch than the gray treefrog.
Additionally, this frog is more tolerant of arid environments and has a more diminutive body. You can usually find them in wooded habitats, but while migrating to a breeding pond, you could see them in open regions.
These frogs often have a coloration that ranges from gray to grayish green and resembles tree bark. They have bright yellow or orange spots on the inside of their rear legs, But they only appear when they leap. However, when they do so, the spots become visible.
During the breeding season, males’ necks are dark gray or black, while the throats of females are much lighter.
Insects such as moths, crickets, flies, grasshoppers, ants, and beetles are some foods consumed by the Cope’s gray tree frog.
They spend most of the year in the trees, but during the breeding season, they come out, and you can find them in the vegetation surrounding wetlands. It’s common for these frogs to spawn in fish-free marshes.
22. Squirrel Tree frog
- Scientific Name: Hyla squirella
- Size: 1 to 1.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 5 to 9 years
The coastal plains of North Carolina are home to a species of frog known as the squirrel tree frog. This frog species is about the same size as a typical tree frog.
They like habitats such as marshes, swamps, and the margins of lakes and streams for their permanent abode. In addition, it is possible to discover them in gardens, trees, vines, or even behind logs.
Although they come in a wide variety of hues, these types of frogs in North Carolina are most commonly found in shades of green that range from light to dark.
Additionally, You can find them in various brown and yellow hues.
They can have spots or be completely plain, and some of them have a dark bar in the space between their eyes or faint stripes running down their sides.
This particular species of frog feeds on smaller insects and habitually forages close to various types of outdoor lights.
The name comes from the fact that their mating call is somewhat reminiscent of the chattering of a squirrel.
As a result of the fact that they are capable of being heard chirping even in the rain, they are also commonly known as rain frogs.
23. Barking Tree frog
- Scientific Name: Dryophytes gratiosus
- Size: 2 to 2.75 inches
- Average Lifespan: 5 to 10 years
The largest species of tree frog found in North Carolina is called the Barking tree frog. The Coastal Plain and eastern Piedmont are both good places to look for them.
They like to remain high in the trees, specifically in pine forests and dry Flatwoods; nevertheless, they will take refuge in burrows occasionally.
When it’s time to reproduce, these frogs seek fish-free, densely vegetated permanent and semi-permanent wetlands.
The barking tree frogs’ bodies are huge, while their heads are small and spherical. They are typically green, and their backs have darker markings that are nearly identical. A white line begins over their mouth and runs down each side of their body.
It’s possible to confuse these frogs with the squirrel tree frog, but you can tell them apart by their larger size and skin’s more granular texture.
March through August are the prime breeding time for this species, although early summer is when you’re most likely to hear them calling.
Their sound has been compared to a loud” don” repeated every one to two seconds and sounds like a dog barking.
24. Gray Treefrog
- Scientific Name: Dryophytes versicolor
- Size: 1.25 inches
- Average Lifespan: 7 to 10 years
The Gray Tree Frog is very similar to the Pine Woods Tree Frog and the Squirrel Tree Frog, although it is heavier and larger than the other two species.
You can distinguish the mating sound of the Cope’s gray treefrog from the cry of the gray treefrog, but other than that, the two species are nearly indistinguishable from one another.
They can be found in various wooded settings, although you can also find them in swamps, woodlands with a lot of leaf litter and debris, and even some backyards.
As a result of the fact that their offspring require an aquatic habitat to mature, they thrive better in the vicinity of places that have puddles or tiny streams.
The hue of a gray tree frog can range from gray to green to brown, depending on its activity level and the environment in which it lives.
Their skin is rough and textured, much like the bark of a tree, and there is a white dot located directly below each eye.
They have big bright orange or yellow patches on the bottom of each leg, which they utilize to ward off potential predators.
The tops of their legs have black dots resembling bands, and the tops have dark spots resembling bands.
The underside is often white or cream-colored, while males have a dark-colored throat despite having a lighter-colored belly.
Insects, including slugs, ants, snails, plant lice, mites, and spiders, comprise most of an adult gray tree frog’s diet. They will also consume the occasional small frog.
Although mating in these frogs often begins in the early spring, it mostly depends on the temperature and area in which they live.
Since these types of frogs in North Carolina are only active at night, you’ll have to look for them during the daytime, lurking under fallen leaves, in rotting tree logs, or among the roots of trees.
25. Green Tree frog
- Scientific Name: Dryophytes cinereus
- Size: 2 to 2.5 inches
- Average Lifespan: 2 to 6 years
Because they are arboreal, just like most other tree frogs, green tree frogs spend most of their lives dwelling in the branches of trees.
During the breeding season, you can find them hanging out on the margins of wetlands, ponds with a lot of vegetation, and lakes.
Since these frogs are only active at night, they prefer to conceal themselves during the daytime by hiding beneath vegetation along the water’s edge or in other wet, shaded regions.
When the sun goes down, you can find them high in the trees, where they spend the night looking for food while hopping from branch to branch.
Herpetologists have discovered that green tree frogs and other species of tree frogs will build their homes in PVC pipes around wetlands as a habitat for them to inhabit.
The green tree frog is a species of frog about the size of a bullfrog. It has long legs and sticky toe pads that it uses to assist it in climbing trees.
They typically range in color from light to dark green, occasionally olive or brown, and have a stripe of white or yellow running along each side of their bodies.
Certain green tree frogs do not have this stripe on their back. Most frogs have spots of orange or yellow dispersed across their backsides.
Insects, including flies, mosquitoes, crickets, mites, and beetles, are the primary food source for this frog species, as it is for the vast majority of other species of frogs.
These frogs select their prey not based on size but rather on activity, with the most active being the prey item consumed most frequently.
Because of their small size and the low maintenance requirements necessary for survival, these frogs in North Carolina are now commonly kept as pets.
