# Lithobates
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{{Short description|Genus of amphibians}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| fossil_range = {{fossil range|20.4|0|[Early Miocene](/source/Early_Miocene)–present}}
| image = Lithobates catesbeianus PP.jpg
| image_caption = A close up of a male [American bullfrog](/source/American_bullfrog) (''Lithobates catesbeianus'')
| taxon = Lithobates
| authority = [Fitzinger](/source/Leopold_Fitzinger), 1843
| type_species = ''[Rana palmipes](/source/Rana_palmipes)''
| type_species_authority = [Spix](/source/Johann_Baptist_von_Spix), 1824
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = 7 to 50, depending on the definition
| synonyms = * {{extinct}}''Anchylorana'' [Taylor](/source/Edward_Harrison_Taylor), 1942
}}
'''''Lithobates''''' is a genus of frogs belonging to the family [Ranidae](/source/Ranidae), native to the Americas.[{{cite book|last=Dodd|first=C. Kenneth|title=Frogs of the United States and Canada|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Hwfz9P9gS0C&pg=PR20|volume=1|date=2013|publisher=The Johns Hopkins University Press|isbn=978-1-4214-0633-6|page=20}}][{{LSJ|ba%2Fths|βάτης|ref}} one that treads or covers] As presently defined, it includes many of eastern North America's most familiar aquatic frog species, including the [American bullfrog](/source/American_bullfrog), [green frog](/source/Lithobates_clamitans), and the [leopard frogs](/source/Leopard_frog).
== Systematics ==
The name was defined by Hillis and Wilcox (2005) for a subgenus of four [Central](/source/Central_America) and [South America](/source/South_America)n frogs within the genus ''[Rana](/source/Rana_(genus))''.[{{cite journal|last1=Hillis |first1=David M. |last2=Wilcox |first2=Thomas P. |year=2005 |title=Phylogeny of the New World true frogs (Rana) |url=http://www.cnah.org/pdf_files/215.pdf |journal=[Mol. Phylogenet. Evol.](/source/Molecular_Phylogenetics_and_Evolution) |volume=34 |issue= 2|pages=299–314 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2004.10.007 |pmid=15619443 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080528131608/http://www.cnah.org/pdf_files/215.pdf |archive-date=2008-05-28 }}][{{cite journal | last1 = Hillis | first1 = David M | year = 2007 | title = Constraints in naming parts of the Tree of Life | journal = [Mol. Phylogenet. Evol.](/source/Molecular_Phylogenetics_and_Evolution) | volume = 42 | issue = 2| pages = 331–338 | doi = 10.1016/j.ympev.2006.08.001 | pmid=16997582}}] The subgenus was subsequently expanded to seven species in Central and South America in a systematic revision of the genus ''Rana''.[{{cite journal|last1=Yuan|first1=Zhi-Yong|last2=Zhou|first2=Wei-Wei|last3=Chen|first3=Xin|last4=Poyarkov|first4=Nikolay A.|last5=Chen|first5=Hong-Man|last6=Jang-Liaw|first6=Nian-Hong|last7=Chou|first7=Wen-Hao|last8=Matzke|first8=Nicholas J.|last9=Iizuka|first9=Koji|last10=Min|first10=Mi-Sook|last11=Kuzmin|first11=Sergius L.|last12=Zhang|first12=Ya-Ping|last13=Cannatella|first13=David C.|last14=Hillis|first14=David M.|last15=Che|first15=Jing |year=2016 |title=Spatiotemporal diversification of the true frogs (genus Rana): A historical framework for a widely studied group of model organisms |journal=Systematic Biology |pages=824–842 |doi=10.1093/sysbio/syw055 |pmid=27288482 |volume=65|issue=5|doi-access=free|hdl=2292/43460|hdl-access=free}}] The name was previously used by Frost ''et al.'' as a separate genus of ranid frogs that included most of the North American frogs traditionally included in the genus ''Rana'',[Frost, Darrel R. (2006): Amphibian Species of the World Version 3 - [http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/references.php?id=15026 Petropedetidae Noble, 1931]. American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA. Retrieved 2006-AUG-05., Frost, Darrel R. et al. (2006): The amphibian tree of life. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. Number 297. New York.] including the [American bullfrog](/source/American_bullfrog) and [northern leopard frog](/source/northern_leopard_frog). Frost used the name in this sense in the frog section of a North American common names list edited by Crother (2008).[Crother, B.I. (ed.) (2008): Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North American north of Mexico - {{cite web |url=http://www.ssarherps.org/pages/comm_names/Lithobates_main.php |title=Standard and Common Names |access-date=2012-04-28 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130416032441/http://www.ssarherps.org/pages/comm_names/Lithobates_main.php |archive-date=2013-04-16 }}. SSAR Herptological Circular 37:1-84.] This proposed change has since been rejected by others, such as Stuart (2008),[Stuart, Bryan L. (2008): The phylogenetic problem of ''Huia'' (Amphibia: Ranidae). ''[Mol. Phylogenet. Evol.](/source/Molecular_Phylogenetics_and_Evolution)'' '''46'''(1): 49–60 {{doi|10.1016/j.ympev.2007.09.016}} (HTMl abstract)] Pauly et al. (2009),[{{cite journal | last1 = Pauly | first1 = Greg B. | last2 = Hillis | first2 = David M. | last3 = Cannatella | first3 = David C. | year = 2009 | title = Taxonomic freedom and the role of official lists of species names | url = http://www.cnah.org/pdf_files/1255.pdf | journal = Herpetologica | volume = 65 | issue = 2| pages = 115–128 | doi = 10.1655/08-031r1.1 | s2cid = 283839 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110725183043/http://www.cnah.org/pdf_files/1255.pdf | archive-date = 2011-07-25 }}] AmphibiaWeb,[AmphibiaWeb: Information on amphibian biology and conservation. [web application]. 2012. Berkeley, California: [http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi-bin/amphib_query?query_src=aw_lists_genera_&table=amphib&where-genus=rana ''Rana'']] and Yuan et al. (2016).[
{{Columns-list|colwidth=25em|
* ''[Lithobates areolatus](/source/Lithobates_areolatus)'' (Baird and Girard, 1852) – [crawfish frog](/source/crawfish_frog)
* ''[Lithobates berlandieri](/source/Lithobates_berlandieri)'' (Baird, 1859) – [Rio Grande leopard frog](/source/Rio_Grande_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates blairi](/source/Lithobates_blairi)'' (Mecham, Littlejohn, Oldham, Brown, and Brown, 1973) – [Plains leopard frog](/source/Plains_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates brownorum](/source/Lithobates_brownorum)'' (Sanders, 1973)
* ''[Lithobates bwana](/source/Lithobates_bwana)'' (Hillis and de Sá, 1988) – [Rio Chipillico frog](/source/Rio_Chipillico_frog)
* ''[Lithobates capito](/source/Lithobates_capito)'' (LeConte, 1855) – [gopher frog](/source/gopher_frog)
* ''[Lithobates catesbeianus](/source/Lithobates_catesbeianus)'' (Shaw, 1802) – [American bullfrog](/source/American_bullfrog)
* ''[Lithobates chichicuahutla](/source/Lithobates_chichicuahutla)'' (Cuellar, Méndez-De La Cruz, and Villagrán-Santa Cruz, 1996) – [Lago de las Minas frog](/source/Lago_de_las_Minas_frog)
* ''[Lithobates chiricahuensis](/source/Lithobates_chiricahuensis)'' (Platz and Mecham, 1979) – [Chiricahua leopard frog](/source/Chiricahua_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates clamitans](/source/Lithobates_clamitans)'' (Latreille, 1801) – [green frog](/source/Lithobates_clamitans)
* ''[Lithobates dunni](/source/Lithobates_dunni)'' (Zweifel, 1957) – [Patzcuaro frog](/source/Patzcuaro_frog)
*{{extinct}}''[Lithobates fisheri](/source/Lithobates_fisheri)'' (Stejneger, 1893) – [Vegas Valley leopard frog](/source/Vegas_Valley_leopard_frog) or Mogollon Rim leopard frog
* ''[Lithobates forreri](/source/Lithobates_forreri)'' (Boulenger, 1883) – [Forrer's leopard frog](/source/Forrer's_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates grylio](/source/Lithobates_grylio)'' (Stejneger, 1901) – [pig frog](/source/pig_frog)
* ''[Lithobates heckscheri](/source/Lithobates_heckscheri)'' (Wright, 1924) – [river frog](/source/river_frog)
* ''[Lithobates johni](/source/Lithobates_johni)'' (Blair, 1965) – [Moore's frog](/source/Moore's_frog)
* ''[Lithobates juliani](/source/Lithobates_juliani)'' (Hillis and de Sá, 1988) – [Maya Mountains frog](/source/Maya_Mountains_frog)
* ''[Lithobates kauffeldi](/source/Lithobates_kauffeldi)'' (Feinberg, Newman, Watkins-Colwell, Schlesinger, Zarate, Curry, Shaffer, and Burger, 2014) – [Atlantic Coast leopard frog](/source/Atlantic_Coast_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates lenca](/source/Lithobates_lenca)'' (Luque-Montes ''et al''., 2018)
* ''[Lithobates lemosespinali](/source/Lithobates_lemosespinali)'' (Smith and Chiszar, 2003) – [Lemos-Espinal's leopard frog](/source/Lemos-Espinal's_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates macroglossa](/source/Lithobates_macroglossa)'' (Brocchi, 1877) – [Guatemala plateau frog](/source/Guatemala_plateau_frog)
* ''[Lithobates maculatus](/source/Lithobates_maculatus)'' (Brocchi, 1877) – [highland frog](/source/highland_frog)
* ''[Lithobates magnaocularis](/source/Lithobates_magnaocularis)'' (Frost and Bagnara, 1974) – [Northwest Mexico leopard frog](/source/Northwest_Mexico_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates megapoda](/source/Lithobates_megapoda)'' (Taylor, 1942) – [big-footed leopard frog](/source/big-footed_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates miadis](/source/Lithobates_miadis)'' (Barbour and Loveridge, 1929) – [island leopard frog](/source/island_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates montezumae](/source/Lithobates_montezumae)'' (Baird, 1854) – [Montezuma leopard frog](/source/Montezuma_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates neovolcanicus](/source/Lithobates_neovolcanicus)'' (Hillis and Frost, 1985) – [transverse volcanic leopard frog](/source/transverse_volcanic_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates okaloosae](/source/Lithobates_okaloosae)'' (Moler, 1985) – [Florida bog frog](/source/Florida_bog_frog)
* ''[Lithobates omiltemanus](/source/Lithobates_omiltemanus)'' (Günther, 1900) – [Guerreran leopard frog](/source/Guerreran_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates onca](/source/Lithobates_onca)'' (Cope, 1875) – [relict leopard frog](/source/relict_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates palmipes](/source/Lithobates_palmipes)'' (Spix, 1824) – [Amazon River frog](/source/Amazon_River_frog)
* ''[Lithobates palustris](/source/Lithobates_palustris)'' (LeConte, 1825) – [pickerel frog](/source/pickerel_frog)
* ''[Lithobates pipiens](/source/Lithobates_pipiens)'' (Schreber, 1782) – [northern leopard frog](/source/northern_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates psilonota](/source/Lithobates_psilonota)'' (Webb, 2001) – [smooth-backed frog](/source/smooth-backed_frog)
* ''[Lithobates pueblae](/source/Lithobates_pueblae)'' (Zweifel, 1955) – [Puebla frog](/source/Puebla_frog)
* ''[Lithobates pustulosus](/source/Lithobates_pustulosus)'' (Boulenger, 1883) – [Mexican cascades frog](/source/Mexican_cascades_frog)
* ''[Lithobates septentrionalis](/source/Lithobates_septentrionalis)'' (Baird, 1854) – [mink frog](/source/mink_frog)
* ''[Lithobates sevosus](/source/Lithobates_sevosus)'' (Goin and Netting, 1940) – [Mississippi gopher frog](/source/Mississippi_gopher_frog)
* ''[Lithobates sierramadrensis](/source/Lithobates_sierramadrensis)'' (Taylor, 1939) – [Sierra Madre frog](/source/Sierra_Madre_frog)
* ''[Lithobates spectabilis](/source/Lithobates_spectabilis)'' (Hillis and Frost, 1985) – [showy leopard frog](/source/showy_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates sphenocephalus](/source/Lithobates_sphenocephalus)'' (Cope, 1886) – [southern leopard frog](/source/southern_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates sylvaticus](/source/Lithobates_sylvaticus)'' (LeConte, 1825) – [wood frog](/source/wood_frog)
* ''[Lithobates tarahumarae](/source/Lithobates_tarahumarae)'' (Boulenger, 1917) – [Tarahumara frog](/source/Tarahumara_frog)
* ''[Lithobates taylori](/source/Lithobates_taylori)'' (Smith, 1959) – [Peralta frog](/source/Peralta_frog)
* ''[Lithobates tlaloci](/source/Lithobates_tlaloci)'' (Hillis and Frost, 1985) – [Tlaloc's leopard frog](/source/Tlaloc's_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates vaillanti](/source/Lithobates_vaillanti)'' (Brocchi, 1877) – [Vaillant's frog](/source/Vaillant's_frog)
* ''[Lithobates vibicarius](/source/Lithobates_vibicarius)'' (Cope, 1894) – [green-eyed frog](/source/green-eyed_frog)
* ''[Lithobates virgatipes](/source/Lithobates_virgatipes)'' (Cope, 1891) – [carpenter frog](/source/carpenter_frog)
* ''[Lithobates warszewitschii](/source/Lithobates_warszewitschii)'' (Schmidt, 1857) – [Warszewitsch's frog](/source/Warszewitsch's_frog)
* ''[Lithobates yavapaiensis](/source/Lithobates_yavapaiensis)'' (Platz and Frost, 1984) – [lowland leopard frog](/source/lowland_leopard_frog)
* ''[Lithobates zweifeli](/source/Lithobates_zweifeli)'' (Hillis, Frost, and Webb, 1984) – [Zweifel's frog](/source/Zweifel's_frog)
}}
Alternatively, if ''Lithobates'' is treated as a [subgenus](/source/subgenus) (neotropical true frogs), then this narrower definition would contain the following species:
{{Columns-list|colwidth=25em|
* ''[Rana (Lithobates) bwana](/source/Rana_bwana)'' Hillis and de Sá, 1988 – [Rio Chipillico frog](/source/Rio_Chipillico_frog)
* ''[Rana (Lithobates) juliani](/source/Rana_juliani)'' Hillis and de Sá, 1988 – [Maya Mountains frog](/source/Maya_Mountains_frog)
* ''[Rana (Lithobates) maculata](/source/Rana_maculata)'' Brocchi, 1877 – [highland frog](/source/highland_frog)
* ''[Rana (Lithobates) palmipes](/source/Rana_palmipes)'' Spix, 1824 – [Amazon River frog](/source/Amazon_River_frog)
* ''[Rana (Lithobates) vaillanti](/source/Rana_vaillanti)'' Brocchi, 1877 – [Vaillant's frog](/source/Vaillant's_frog)
* ''[Rana (Lithobates) vibicaria](/source/Rana_vibicaria)'' (Cope, 1894) – [green-eyed frog](/source/green-eyed_frog)
* ''[Rana (Lithobates) warszewitschii](/source/Rana_warszewitschii)'' Schmidt, 1857 – [Warszewitsch's frog](/source/Warszewitsch's_frog)
}}
=== Fossil species ===
The following fossil species are known, all assignable to the ''L. pipiens'' (leopard frog) complex:][{{Cite journal |last=Sanchiz |first=B. |date=2012-01-01 |title=Nomenclatural notes on living and fossil amphibians |url=https://www.academia.edu/30177911/Nomenclatural_notes_on_living_and_fossil_amphibians |journal=Graellsia}}]
* †''[Lithobates bucella](/source/Lithobates_bucella)'' (Holman, 1965) (Early Miocene of Florida)
* †''[Lithobates dubitus](/source/Lithobates_dubitus)'' (Taylor, 1942) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene of [Kansas](/source/Kansas))
* †''[Lithobates fayeae](/source/Lithobates_fayeae)'' (Taylor, 1942) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene of Kansas)
* †''[Lithobates moorei](/source/Lithobates_moorei)'' (Taylor, 1942) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene of Kansas)
* †''[Lithobates miocenicus](/source/Lithobates_miocenicus)'' (Holman, 1965) (Early Miocene of Florida)
* †''[Lithobates robustocondylus](/source/Lithobates_robustocondylus)'' (Taylor, 1942) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene of Kansas)
* †''[Lithobates rexroadensis](/source/Lithobates_rexroadensis)'' (Taylor, 1942) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene of Kansas)
* †''[Lithobates parvissimus](/source/Lithobates_parvissimus)'' (Taylor, 1942) (Pliocene/early Pleistocene of Kansas)
The species described in 1942 were previously placed in their own genus, ''Anchylorana''.[{{Cite journal |last=Martínez‐Gil |first=Helena |last2=Kaliontzopoulou |first2=Antigoni |last3=Enriquez‐Urzelai |first3=Urtzi |date=2025-08-16 |title=Different Macroevolutionary Trajectories Lead to Contrasting Ecogeographical Patterns in Two Widespread Frog Radiations |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/geb.70109 |journal=Global Ecology and Biogeography |language=en |volume=34 |issue=8 |doi=10.1111/geb.70109 |issn=1466-822X}}]{{clade|{{clade
|1=''[L. sylvaticus](/source/Lithobates_sylvaticus)'' (wood frog)
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. septentrionalis](/source/Lithobates_septentrionalis)'' (mink frog)
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. grylio](/source/Lithobates_grylio)'' (pig frog)
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. clamitans](/source/Lithobates_clamitans)'' (green frog)
|2=''[L. okaloosae](/source/Lithobates_okaloosae)'' (Florida bog frog)
}}
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. hecksheri](/source/Lithobates_heckscheri)'' (river frog)
|2=''[L. catesbeianus](/source/Lithobates_catesbeianus)'' (American bullfrog)
}}
}}
}}
}}
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. maculatus](/source/Lithobates_maculatus)'' (highland frog)
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. warszewitschii](/source/Lithobates_warszewitschii)'' (Warszewitsch's frog)
|2=''[L. vibicaria](/source/Lithobates_vibicarius)'' (green-eyed/Rancho Redondo frog)
}}
}}
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. vaillanti](/source/Lithobates_vaillanti)'' (Vaillant's frog)
|2=''[L. juliani](/source/Lithobates_juliani)'' (Maya Mountains frog)
}}
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. bwana](/source/Lithobates_bwana)'' (Rio Chipillico frog)
|2=''[L. palmipes](/source/Lithobates_palmipes)'' (Amazon River frog)
}}
}}
}}
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. sierramadrensis](/source/Lithobates_sierramadrensis)'' (Sierra Madre frog)
|2=''[L. tarahumarae](/source/Lithobates_tarahumarae)'' (Tarahumara frog)
}}
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. pipiens](/source/Lithobates_pipiens)'' (northern leopard frog)
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. chiricahuensis](/source/Lithobates_chiricahuensis)'' (Chiricahua leopard frog)
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. montezumae](/source/Lithobates_montezumae)'' (Montezuma leopard frog)
|2=''[L. dunni](/source/Lithobates_dunni)'' (Patzcuaro frog)
}}
}}
}}
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. palustris](/source/Lithobates_palustris)'' (pickerel frog)
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. areolatus](/source/Lithobates_areolatus)'' (crawfish frog)
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. sevosus](/source/Lithobates_sevosus)'' (Mississippi gopher frog)
|2=''[L. capito](/source/Lithobates_capito)'' (gopher frog)
}}
}}
}}
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. sphenocephalus](/source/Lithobates_sphenocephalus)'' (southern leopard frog)
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. blairi](/source/Lithobates_blairi)'' (plains leopard frog)
|2=''[L. berlandieri](/source/Lithobates_berlandieri)'' (Rio Grande leopard frog)
}}
}}
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. macroglossa](/source/Lithobates_macroglossa)'' (Guatemala plateau frog)
|2={{clade
|1={{clade
|1=''[L. forreri](/source/Lithobates_forreri)'' (Forrer's grass frog)
|2=''[L. omiltemanus](/source/Lithobates_omiltemanus)'' (Guerreran leopard frog)
}}
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. magnaocularis](/source/Lithobates_magnaocularis)'' (Northwest Mexico leopard frog)
|2={{clade
|1=''[L. onca](/source/Lithobates_onca)'' (relict leopard frog)
|2=''[L. yavapaiensis](/source/Lithobates_yavapaiensis)'' (lowland leopard frog)
}}
}}
}}
}}
}}
}}
}}
}}
}}
}}
}}|style=|label1='''''Lithobates'''''}}
==References==
{{Reflist|30em|refs=
[{{cite book | editor = Crother, Brian I. | title = Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. Seventh edition. SSAR Herpetological circular No. 39 |date=August 2012 | publisher = Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles (SSAR) | url = https://ssarherps.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/HC_39_7thEd.pdf | location = Shoreview, MN | isbn = 978-0-916984-85-4 |pages=1–92}}]
[{{cite web |url=http://research.amnh.org/vz/herpetology/amphibia123/index.php//Amphibia/Anura/Ranidae/Lithobates |title=''Lithobates'' Fitzinger, 1843 |author=Frost, Darrel R. |year=2016 |work=Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0 |publisher=American Museum of Natural History |access-date=7 August 2016}}]
[{{cite web |url=http://www.iucnredlist.org/search |title=The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2016-1 |publisher=International Union for Conservation of Nature |access-date=7 August 2016}}]
}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q2047738}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Lithobates
Category:True frogs
Category:Amphibian genera
Category:Amphibians of North America
Category:Amphibians of Central America
Category:Amphibians of South America
Category:Taxa named by Leopold Fitzinger
Category:Extant Burdigalian first appearances
---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Lithobates](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithobates) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithobates?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.