B.C. Reptiles & Amphibians

Credit: John Clare

Northern Red-legged Frog

Rana aurora

Description

Other names: Rana aurora aurora

In British Columbia, the Red-legged Frog is represented as the Northern subspecies, Rana aurora aurora, that ranges into Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. Northern Red-legged Frogs are medium-sized, reaching body lengths up to 10-13 cm with females growing larger than males. They have an indistinct tympanum and the toes of the hindfeet are not fully webbed. The eyes are gold and oriented to the sides. The skin on the underside of the hind legs is translucent, such that bones may be seen through the skin. Northern Red-legged Frogs range in colour from reddish-brown to gray and may display dark speckling or blotching. In northern populations, these blotches do not have light centers. The throat and chest are light gray with red or black flecking. The belly is whitish, turning into red tinges on the lower belly and underside of legs, especially as the frog ages. Northern Red-legged Frog tadpoles have long tails with a large tail fin. They are tan or brown with gold flecking and the tail fin has a gold tinge with dark spots. Tadpoles will typically reach 8 cm in length before metamorphosis.

Listen to the Indigenous words for “frog” here!

Northern Red-legged Frog Call

The call of the Northern Red-legged Frog is a weak, throaty series of low-pitched pulses lasting 2-3 seconds, sometimes likened to a stuttering sound. Red-legged Frog calls often do not carry very far as they typically call from underwater.

Northern Red-legged Frog Call

The call of the Northern Red-legged Frog is a weak, throaty series of low-pitched pulses lasting 2-3 seconds, sometimes likened to a stuttering sound. Red-legged Frog calls often do not carry very far as they typically call from underwater.

Similar Species

Northern Red-legged Frogs may be easily confused with the Oregon and Columbia Spotted Frogs, which have a similar body shape and may have a reddish underside. However, in Spotted Frogs, the skin on the underside of the body is not semi-translucent. The eyes of Spotted Frogs are also angled upwards, whereas the eyes of the Northern Red-legged Frog are angled outward. Spotted Frogs have complete webbing on the hind feet that extends to the tips of the toes, whereas the Northern Red-legged Frog has incomplete webbing on the hindfeet. The distributions of the Northern Red-legged Frog and the Columbia Spotted Frog do not overlap, so they can be differentiated by location.

Northern Red-legged Frog

Oregon Spotted Frog

Columbia Spotted Frog

Distribution

In Canada, the Northern Red-legged Frog has a very limited distribution, only occurring in the southwestern corner of British Columbia, Vancouver Island, and several Gulf Islands. The distribution of the Northern Red-legged Frog along the coast north of the Fraser River is poorly understood. Historical records suggest that they may have been found as far north as Kingcome Inlet. Further south, the distribution continues along the west coast of the United States and into Mexico.

Habitat

In Canada, Northern Red-legged Frogs hibernate throughout the winter and are active from late February until October. Juvenile frogs may be active both nocturnally (at night) and diurnally (during the day), but adult frogs are primarily nocturnal. They are less aquatic than the Spotted Frogs, and thus may be found along the shoreline or foraging on land. The optimal breeding habitats are highly vegetated, permanent water bodies at elevations from sea level up to 2400 m. Outside of the breeding season, Northern Red-legged Frogs may disperse over 4 kilometers from their breeding sites. They will often disperse into surrounding moist forests and can be found in a variety of forest successional stages. However, they do not appear to tolerate clearcuts. Hibernation can take place aquatically, underwater at the bottom of wetlands, or underground in terrestrial habitats.

Reproduction

Breeding occurs early on in the active season, in late winter or early spring. Males will call from underwater to attract females immediately after ice recedes. Fertilization occurs externally as the male grasps the female in amplexus. Females will lay anywhere from 300-5,000 eggs that are almost always attached to vegetation submerged beneath the surface in the deepest water available. Hatching occurs after 6-14 days depending on water temperature. Tadpoles will generally undergo metamorphosis after 3-7 months, although some will overwinter and transform after 12 months in larval stage. Males reach sexual maturity at 2 years, compared to females at 3 years. The lifespan of the Northern Red-legged Frog is 8-10 years.

Diet

Adult Northern Red-legged Frogs primarily feed on invertebrates like spiders, beetles, aphids, grasshoppers, and slugs. Tadpoles feed on algae.

Conservation Status

Global: G4 (2015)

COSEWIC: SC

SARA:1-SC (2005)

Provincial: S3 (2016)

BC List: Blue

Learn more about conservation status rankings here

Threats

The Northern Red-legged Frog occurs in some of the most developed regions in North America, and the conversion of wetland habitats into urban and agricultural areas has led to substantial and ongoing declines. The species appears to be declining in much of its range in North America including Oregon and California. In California, a subspecies (the California Red-legged Frog) has been listed as Threatened. In British Columbia, Northern Red-legged Frogs have declined on central Vancouver Island and in the Lower Mainland. Suspected drivers of decline include habitat loss, introduction of competitive Bullfrogs and Green Frogs, and the detrimental effects of forestry activities. Habitat loss appears to be the main threat to this species in British Columbia, where loss of wetlands has reduced habitat connectivity thereby increasing the risk of local extinction by reducing immigration and emigration between populations. As Northern Red-legged Frogs often disperse substantial distance from breeding ground, road mortality is a cause for concern especially in the Lower Mainland where road networks are particularly dense. Contaminated water run-off from roads and agricultural uses may also be an indirect threat to the health of Northern Red-legged Frog populations. In less developed parts of its range, forestry activities reduce and fragment the amount of available habitat for Northern Red-legged Frogs.

Did You Know?

Fact #1

The Latin “aurora” means “dawn”, and refers to the pinky-red colouring of the Red-legged Frog’s legs.

Fact #2

Red-legged Frogs are very quick to move through litter on the forest floor. They make long, low hops that are faster than most people can follow!

Species Account Author: Marcus Atkins

References
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2008. Species Summary: Rana aurora. B.C. Minist. of Environment.
Available:https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed May 26, 2021).
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2021. BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer. B.C. Minist. of Environ. Victoria, B.C.
Available:https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed May 26, 2021).
B.C. Ministry of Environment. 2015j. Recovery plan for the Northern Red-legged Frog (Rana aurora) in British Columbia. B.C. Ministry of Environment, Victoria, BC. 51 pp.
COSEWIC. 2015c. COSEWIC assessment and status report on the Northern Red-legged Frog Rana aurora in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. xii + 69 pp.
Environment and Climate Change Canada. 2017f. Management Plan for the Northern Red-legged Frog (Rana aurora) in Canada. Species at Risk Act Management Plan Series. Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa. 2 parts, 4 pp.+ 51 pp.
Matsuda, Brent, David M. Green, and Patrick T. Gregory. 2006. Amphibians and Reptiles of British Columbia. Handbook. Royal BC Museum, Victoria.
Shean, J. T. S. 2002. Post-breeding movements and habitat use by the Northern Red-legged Frog, Rana aurora aurora, at Dempsey Creek, Thurston County, Washington. M.Sc. Thesis, Evergreen State College, Olympia, Washington, U.S.A.
https://www.naturewatch.ca/frogwatch/Red-legged-frog/
http://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eirs/viewDocumentDetail.do?fromStatic=true&repository=BDP&documentId=3464
http://canadianherpetology.ca/species/species_page.html?cname=Northern%20Red-legged%20Frog#:~:text=The%20Northern%20Red%2Dlegged%20Frog,and%20sometimes%20larger%20dark%20spots.
http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/efauna/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Rana%20aurora https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/environment/plants-animals-ecosystems/conservation-data-centre/explore-cdc-data/species-and-ecosystems-explorer