Lithobates tarahumarae
—
Tarahumara Frog
The genus Lithobates was split from Rana by Frost et al in 2006. This has been a controversial change ever since, and many authorities continue to use Rana.
Matt Cage pointed out a spot where the road bridged a small river as a likely location for Tarahumara Frogs, which he had seen on previous trips. Andrew DuBois and I had not previously encountered this species, so while Matt stood guard over the car, we scrambled down the steep hillsides and prowled the water's edges to find a few individuals.
The range of this species includes a few isolated spots in southern Arizona, but I had failed to find any there the few times I'd been in their habitat.
Online references:
- Rana tarahumarae account on AmphibiaWeb
- Rana tarahumarae account on Tucson Herpetological Society site
Printed references:
- Brennan, T. C. and Holycross, A. T. 2006. A Field Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles in Arizona
- Crother, B. I. (ed.) 2017. Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding, Eighth Edition
- Rorabaugh, J.C., Lemos-Espinal, J.A. 2016. A Field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Sonora, Mexico
- Stebbins, R. C. 2003. Peterson Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians, Third Edition