science

Leopard frog

Leopard frog is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Leopard frog rather than just read about it. In short: Leopard frog is a generic name used to refer to various species in the true frog genus Lithobates. They all have similar coloration: brown or green with spots that form a leopard pattern.

Key takeaways

Leopard frog belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Leopard frog to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Leopard frog from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Leopard frog is a generic name used to refer to various species in the true frog genus Lithobates. They all have similar coloration: brown or green with spots that form a leopard pattern. They are distinguished by their distribution and behavioral, morphological, and genetic differences. The range of the various species of leopard frogs extends from the Hudson Bay in Canada, throughout the United States, throughout Mexico and other parts of Central America, and possibly the very northern section of South America.

Taxonomy Leopard frogs are grouped in the genus Lithobates, along with many other different frogs such as the American bullfrog.

Species

Atlantic Coast leopard frog (Lithobates kauffeldi) Bigfoot leopard frog (Lithobates megapoda) Browns' leopard frog (Lithobates brownorum) Chiricahua leopard frog (Lithobates chiricahuensis) Forrer's grass frog (Lithobates forreri) Guerreran leopard frog (Lithobates omiltemanus) Island leopard frog (Lithobates miadis) Lemos-Espinal's leopard frog (Lithobates lemosespinali) Lenca leopard frog (Lithobates lenca) Lowland leopard frog (Lithobates yavapaiensis) Montezuma leopard frog (Lithobates montezumae) Northern leopard frog (Lithobates pipiens) Northwest Mexico leopard frog (Lithobates magnaocularis) Peralta frog (Lithobates taylori) Pickerel frog (Lithobates palustris) Plains leopard frog (Lithobates blairi) Relict leopard frog (Lithobates onca) Rio Grande leopard frog (Lithobates berlandieri) Showy leopard frog (Lithobates spectabilis) Southern leopard frog (Lithobates sphenocephalus) Tlaloc's leopard frog (Lithobates tlaloci) Transverse volcanic leopard frog (Lithobates neovolcanicus) Vegas Valley leopard frog (Lithobates fisheri)

New species Several leopard frog species look very similar to each other, and even within a population there is a lot of variation. Some populations may actually be cryptic species complexes. In March 2012, it was announced that DNA testing had confirmed that a new species of leopard frog had been found whose habitat was centered near New York's Yankee Stadium and included northern New Jersey, southeastern New York, and Staten Island; the new species was first distinguished by its short, repetitive croak, distinct from the "long snore" or "rapid chuckle" of other leopard frog species in that area (L. pipiens and L. sphenocephalus). This distinct species has been identified as far south as southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. On 30 October 2014, it was announced that the frog found in March 2012 has been described as a new species: the Atlantic Coast leopard frog (Lithobates kauffeldi) that once inhabited Manhattan, New York.

References

Further reading Hillis, David M.; Wilcox, Thomas P. (2004). "Phylogeny of the New World true frogs (Rana)" (PDF). Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 34 (2): 299–314. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.10.007. PMID 15619443. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 May 2008. Hillis, David M (2007). "Constraints in naming parts of the Tree of Life" (PDF). Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 42 (2): 331–338. Bibcode:2007MolPE..42..331H. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2006.08.001. PMID 16997582. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2011.

External links Leopard Frog at Western Ecological Research Centre Plains Leopard Frog – Rana blairi at the Iowa Reptile and Amphibian Field Guide

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Leopard frog

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Leopard frog claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Leopard frog before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Leopard frog ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Leopard frog

In research: Leopard frog appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Leopard frog in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Leopard frog is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Amphibian common names, Amphibians of North America, Fauna of California, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Leopard frog outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Leopard frog in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Leopard frog means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Leopard frog out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Leopard frog in simple terms?

Leopard frog is a generic name used to refer to various species in the true frog genus Lithobates. They all have similar coloration: brown or green with spots that form a leopard pattern.

Why does Leopard frog matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Leopard frog?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Leopard frog.