Wood Frog

Lithobates sylvaticus

The wood frog (Lithobates sylvaticus or Rana sylvatica) is a frog species that has a broad distribution over North America, extending from the boreal forest of the north to the southern Appalachians, with several notable disjunct populations including lowland eastern North Carolina. The wood frog has garnered attention by biologists because of its freeze tolerance, relatively great degree of terrestrialism (for a ranid), interesting habitat associations (peat bogs, vernal pools, uplands), and relatively long-range movements.

The ecology and conservation of the wood frog has attracted research attention in recent years because they are often considered "obligate" breeders in ephemeral wetlands (sometimes called "vernal pools") that are themselves more imperiled than the species that breed in them. The wood frog has been proposed to be the official state amphibian of New York.