Lithobates pipiens (Schreber, 1782)

Class: Amphibia > Order: Anura > Family: Ranidae > Genus: Lithobates > Species: Lithobates pipiens

Rana virescens plantis tetradactylis Kalm, 1761, En Resa Norra America, 3: 46. Types: Not stated or known to exist. Type locality: New Jersey, USA. Unavailable nonbinominal name. (See Rana virescens Cope, 1889, below.) Non-binominal according to Stejneger, 1893, N. Am. Fauna, 7: 228. Synonymy by Linnaeus, 1766, Syst. Nat., Ed. 12, 1(1): 356, and Stejneger and Barbour, 1917, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept.: 38. Unavailable tetranomial—the source of much confusion. See Pace, 1974, Misc. Publ. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan, 148: 11.

Rana halecina Linnaeus, 1766, Syst. Nat., Ed. 12, 1(1): 356. Type(s): By indication, description supplied by Kalm, 1761, En Resa Norra America, 3: 45 (as Rana virescens plantis tetradactylis). Type locality: Not stated, but from a reading of Kalm clearly in Racoon, New Jersey, USA. Coined by Linnaeus as a junior synonym of Rana ocellata Linnaeus, 1758 (now = Osteopilus ocellatus) and attributed to Kalm in error (as the name employed by Kalm was the non-binomial Rana virescens plantis tetradactylis), but made available, according to Lavilla, Langone, Caramaschi, Heyer, and de Sá, 2010, Zootaxa, 2346: 1–16, by Daudin, 1802 "An. XI", Hist. Nat. Rain. Gren. Crap., Quarto: 63 (also as "Rana halecina Kalm"). See Garman, 1888, Bull. Essex Inst., 20: 1–11, and Pace, 1974, Misc. Publ. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan, 148: 11, for nomenclatural discussion. Should this name be considered the senior name for this species the issue must be referred to the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature.

Rana pipiens Schreber, 1782, Der Naturforscher, Halle, 18: 182. Type(s): Not designated; UMMZ 71365 designated neotype by Pace, 1974, Misc. Publ. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan, 148: 16. Type locality: "Carolina", "Neu Jersey", "Neu York", USA; restricted to "Racoon, Gloucester County, New Jersey", USA, by Kellogg, 1932, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 160: 204; restricted (with discussion) to "White Plains, New York", USA, by Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 82, (but see discussion by Kauffeld, 1937, Herpetologica, 1: 84–87); neotype is from "Fall Creek, Etna, Thompkins County, New York", USA.

Rana halecina — Daudin, 1802 "An. XI", Hist. Nat. Rain. Gren. Crap., Quarto: 63. Treated as a junior synonym (although senior) of Rana pipiens Schreber, 1782.

Rana halecina halecina — Cope, 1875, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 1: 32.

Rana virescens brachycephala Cope, 1889, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 34: 403. Holotype: USNM 3363, by original designation; USNM 3363 is a syntypic series of 15 specimens according to Cochran, 1961, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 220: 76 (see comments by Kellogg, 1932, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 160: 208). Type locality: "Yellowstone River", Montana, USA. Placed without explanation into the synonymy of Lithobates berlandieri by Fouquette and Dubois, 2014, Checklist N.A. Amph. Rept.: 404 (and under Lithobates pipiens, p. 421), although the type locality is well outside the range of that species and there is no evidence that the holotype was examined.  

Rana pipiens brachycephala — Test, 1893, Bull. U.S. Fish Comm., 11: 57; Van Denburgh, 1912, Proc. California Acad. Sci., Ser. 4, 3: 158; Mittleman and Gier, 1942, Proc. New England Zool. Club, 20: 7.

Rana pipiens pipiens — Test, 1893, Bull. U.S. Fish Comm., 11: 57.

Rana burnsi Weed, 1922, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 35: 108. Holotype: FMNH 3065, by original designation. Type locality: "New London, Kandiyohi County, Minnesota", USA. Synonymy by Kellogg, 1932, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 160: 209; Moore, 1942, Genetics, 27: 408–416; Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 82; Anderson and Volpe, 1958, Science, 127: 1048–1050.

Rana kandiyohi Weed, 1922, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 35: 109. Holotype: FMNH 3066, by original designation. Type locality: "New London, Kandiyohi County, Minnesota", USA. Synonymy with Rana brachycephala by Kellogg, 1932, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 160: 209; Kauffeld, 1937, Herpetologica, 1: 84–87; ; Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 82; Volpe, 1955, Syst. Zool., 4: 75–82; Anderson and Volpe, 1958, Science, 127: 1048–1050.

Rana noblei Schmidt, 1925, Am. Mus. Novit., 175: 1. Holotype: AMNH 5285, by original designation. Type locality: "Yunnanfu, Yunnan", China, in error. Based on a mislabeled North American Rana, according to Pope and Boring, 1940, Peking Nat. Hist. Bull., 15: 48. Synonymy by Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 83; without discussion. Not obviously a North American frog on examination of holotype (DRF).

Rana pipiens burnsi — Myers, 1927 "1926", Proc. Indiana Acad. Sci., 36: 338; Wells, 1964, J. Tennessee Acad. Sci., 39: 52.

Rana pipiens pipiens — Wright and Wright, 1933, Handb. Frogs Toads U.S. Canada: 34.

Rana brachycephala — Kauffeld, 1937, Herpetologica, 1: 86.

Rana pipiens kandiyohi — Wells, 1964, J. Tennessee Acad. Sci., 39: 52.

Rana (Rana) pipiens — Dubois, 1987 "1986", Alytes, 5: 41, by implication.

Rana (Pantherana) pipiens — Dubois, 1992, Bull. Mens. Soc. Linn. Lyon, 61: 332; Hillis, 2007, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 42: 335–336; Yuan, Zhou, Chen, Poyarkov, Chen, Jang-Liaw, Chou, Matzke, Iizuka, Min, Kuzmin, Zhang, Cannatella, Hillis, and Che, 2016, Syst. Biol., 65: 835.

Rana burnsorum — Michels and Bauer, 2004, Bonn. Zool. Beitr., 52: 86. Unjustified emendation according to Dubois, 2007, Zootaxa, 1550: 67.

Rana (Novirana, Sierrana, Pantherana, Stertirana) pipiens — Hillis and Wilcox, 2005, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 34: 305. See Dubois, 2006, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 42: 317–330, Hillis, 2007, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 42: 331–338, and Dubois, 2007, Cladistics, 23: 390–402, for relevant discussion of nomenclature. Invalid name formulation under the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (1999) as discussed by Dubois, 2007, Cladistics, 23: 395.

Rana (Novirana) pipiens — Hillis and Wilcox, 2005, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 34: 305. Interpretation of Fouquette and Dubois, 2014, Checklist N.A. Amph. Rept.: 421, of the nomenclatural act of Hillis and Wilcox, 2005. 

Lithobates pipiens — Frost, Grant, Faivovich, Bain, Haas, Haddad, de Sá, Channing, Wilkinson, Donnellan, Raxworthy, Campbell, Blotto, Moler, Drewes, Nussbaum, Lynch, Green, and Wheeler, 2006, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., 297: 369; Che, Pang, Zhao, Wu, Zhao, and Zhang, 2007, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 43: 1–13; by implication.

Lithobates (Lithobates) pipiens — Dubois, 2006, C. R. Biol., Paris, 329: 829; Dubois, 2006, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 42: 325.

Rana (Lithobates) pipiens — Fouquette and Dubois, 2014, Checklist N.A. Amph. Rept.: 421. 

English Names

Peeping Frog (Rana pipiens: Shaw, 1802, Gen. Zool., 3(1): 105).

Shad Frog (Rana halecina [no longer recognized]: De Kay, 1842, Zool. New York, 1(3): 66; Wood, 1863, Illust. Nat. Hist., 3: 154).

Gold-striped Frog (Rana halecina [no longer recognized]: Yarrow, 1876, List Skeletons and Crania: 39). 

Leopard Frog (Rana halecina [no longer recognized]: Storer, 1840, Boston J. Nat. Hist., 3: 43; Jordan, 1878, Man. Vert. North. U.S., Ed. 2: 187).

Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens: Storer, 1840, Boston J. Nat. Hist., 3: 43; Verrill, 1863, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., 9: 198; Rhoads, 1895, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 47: 394; Stejneger and Barbour, 1917, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept.: 38; Storer, 1925, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 27: 43; Stebbins, 1951, Amph. W. North Am.: 355) (Rana virescens [no longer recognized]: Jordan, 1884, Man. Vert. North. U.S., Ed. 4: 187).

Common Frog (Rana virescens [no longer recognized]: Jordan, 1884, Man. Vert. North. U.S., Ed. 4: 187).

Common Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens: Dickerson, 1906, The Frog Book: 171).

Meadow Frog (Rana pipiens pipiens: Wright and Wright, 1933, Handb. Frogs Toads U.S. Canada: xi).

Unspotted Meadow Frog (Rana pipiens burnsi: Wright and Wright, 1933, Handb. Frogs Toads U.S. Canada: xi).

Mottled Meadow Frog (Rana pipiens kandiyohi: Wright and Wright, 1933, Handb. Frogs Toads U.S. Canada: xi).

Northern Leopard Frog (Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 82; Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 177; Conant, 1975, Field Guide Rept. Amph. E. Cent. N. Am., Ed. 2: 345; Collins, Huheey, Knight, and Smith, 1978, Herpetol. Circ., 7: 13; Frank and Ramus, 1995, Compl. Guide Scient. Common Names Amph. Rept. World: 109; Collins, 1997, Herpetol. Circ., 25: 13; Crother, Boundy, Campbell, de Queiroz, Frost, Highton, Iverson, Meylan, Reeder, Seidel, Sites, Taggart, Tilley, and Wake, 2001 "2000", Herpetol. Circ., 29: 15; Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 234; Frost, McDiarmid, and Mendelson, 2008, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 37: 8; Collins and Taggart, 2009, Standard Common Curr. Sci. Names N. Am. Amph. Turtles Rept. Crocodil., ed. 6: 8; Frost, McDiarmid, Mendelson, and Green, 2012, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 39: 18; Frost, Lemmon, McDiarmid, and Mendelson, 2017, in Crother (ed.), Herpetol. Circ., 43: 15).

American Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens: Cochran, 1961, Living Amph. World: 154).

Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens: Stebbins, 1966, Field Guide W. North Am. Rept. Amph.: 76).

Western Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens brachycephala [no longer recognized]: Schmidt, 1953, Check List N. Am. Amph. Rept., Ed. 6: 83; Conant, Cagle, Goin, Lowe, Neill, Netting, Schmidt, Shaw, Stebbins, and Bogert, 1956, Copeia, 1956: 177).

Spring Frog (Fowler, 1907, Annu. Rep. N.J. State Mus. for 1906: 115).

Shad Frog (Rana halecina halecina [no longer recognized]: Yarrow, 1882, Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus., 24: 25; Fowler, 1907, Annu. Rep. N.J. State Mus. for 1906: 115).

Distribution

Southern Canada (southeastern British Columbia to southern Northern Territory east to Labrador and Nova Scotia) south through eastern Washington eastern Oregon, Nevada and adjacent California to northern Arizona, northern New Mexico (with islolated populations along the Rio Grande south to Las Cruces), thence east-northeast to central Nebraska, Ohio, northern Kentucky, West Virginia, western Maryland, Pennsylvania, and through most of New York to and including New England, USA.

Geographic Occurrence

Natural Resident: Canada, United States of America, United States of America - Arizona, United States of America - California, United States of America - Colorado, United States of America - Connecticut, United States of America - Idaho, United States of America - Illinois, United States of America - Indiana, United States of America - Iowa, United States of America - Kentucky, United States of America - Maine, United States of America - Maryland, United States of America - Massachusetts, United States of America - Michigan, United States of America - Minnesota, United States of America - Missouri, United States of America - Montana, United States of America - Nebraska, United States of America - Nevada, United States of America - New Hampshire, United States of America - New Mexico, United States of America - New York, United States of America - North Dakota, United States of America - Ohio, United States of America - Oregon, United States of America - Pennsylvania, United States of America - Rhode Island, United States of America - South Dakota, United States of America - Texas, United States of America - Utah, United States of America - Vermont, United States of America - Washington, United States of America - West Virginia, United States of America - Wisconsin, United States of America - Wyoming

Comment

Synonymy and discussion in Pace, 1974, Misc. Publ. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan, 148: 16–18. Garman, 1888, Bull. Essex Inst., 20: 1–11, discussed why "Rana halecina Kalm" is unavailable for this taxon. In the subgenus Rana, Rana pipiens subgroup of the Rana pipiens group as defined by Hillis, Frost, and Wright, 1983, Syst. Zool., 32: 132–143. In the Rana (Pantherana) pipiens group of Dubois, 1992, Bull. Mens. Soc. Linn. Lyon, 61: 332. Dunlap, 1981, Copeia, 1981: 876–879, discussed allozyme and call variation in the northern part of the distribution and rejected subspecies. Stebbins, 2003, Field Guide W. Rept. Amph., Ed. 3: 234–236, provided a brief account, figure, and map (and who commented on the disappearance of this species from large areas of its former distribution in the western USA). Hoffman and Blouin, 2004, Evolution, 58: 145–159, reported on mtDNA phylogeography of the species. Di Candia and Routman, 2007, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol., 45: 564–575, reported on hybridization and introgression with Lithobates blairi. Korky, 1978, Copeia, 1978: 455–459, reported on larval differences from Lithobates pipiens in Nebraska. Larson and Lannoo, 2004, Copeia, 2004: 676–682, reported on advertisement call complexity. O'Donnell and Mock, 2012, Conserv. Genetics, 13: 1167–1182, reported on genetic evidence for an eastern and a western lineage (corresponding closely to the old Rana pipiens pipiens and Rana pipiens brachycephala ranges) and discussed the taxonomic and conservation implications. Rorabaugh, 2005, in Lannoo (ed.), Amph. Declines: 570–576, provided a detailed account regarding biology, range, and conservation. Dodd, 2013, Frogs U.S. and Canada, 2 : 578–608, provided an account that summarized relevant literature and documented the extirpation of the species from California, Oregon, Washington and wide areas in the Great Basin region. The delimitation of Lithobates kauffeldi by Feinberg, Newman, Watkins-Colwell, Schlesinger, Zarate, Curry, Shaffer, and Burger, 2014, PLoS One, 9 (10: e108213): 1–15, may require revision of the range of this species to exclude areas of southern New York, southern Connecticut, Rhode Island, and parts of Massachusetts. Elliot, Gerhardt, and Davidson, 2009, Frogs and Toads of N. Am.: 216–219, provided an account, photos, and advertisement call. Altig and McDiarmid, 2015, Handb. Larval Amph. US and Canada: 234–235, provided an account of larval morphology and biology. Painter, Stuart, Giermakowski, and Pierce, 2017, Western Wildlife, 4: 37, commented on the status and county range in New Mexico, USA. Bassett, 2023, Reptiles & Amphibians, 30(e18486): 1–18, provided an updated county distribution map for Texas, USA.  

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