National Park Service LogoU.S. Department of the InteriorNational Park ServiceNational Park Service
National Park Service: U.S. Department of the InteriorNational Park Service Arrowhead
 
 
Find a National Park Near You
Great Basin National Park Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive lined by golden aspens in September
view map
text size: largest larger normal
printer friendly
Great Basin National Park
Amphibians

The following list is for use in Great Basin National Park, North and South Snake Ranges, and Spring and Snake Valleys, White Pine County and Millard County, UT. It is based on museum searches and field observations conducted as part of the Servicewide Inventory and Monitoring Program.

Amphibians (Class Amphibia)
     Order Anura (Frogs & Toads)

True Toads (Family Bufonidae)

Western Toad (Bufo Boreas)
Unique Characteristics: Warty skin and white to cream colored dorsal stripe.
Range: Great Basin, records from western White Pine County, NV. Questionable record from Gandy, UT.
Habitat: Desert streams, springs, lakes, and mountains below 11,800 feet. Fossorial.

Woodhouse’s Toad (bufo woodhousei)
Unique Characteristics: Warty skin, whitish, dorsal stripe, and prominent cranial crest.
Range: Records from Gandy, UT.
Habitat: Sandy areas in sagebrush habitats, farms, irrigation ditches up to 8,500 feet.

True Frogs (Family Ranidae)

Northern Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens)
Unique Characteristics: Well-defined, pale bordered, oval or dark spots on back. Well-defined, dorsolateral folds continuous and not angled inward.
Range: Great Basin distribution spotty. Found in Spring and Snake Valley marshes.
Habitat: Springs, slow streams, marshes with permanent water and aquatic vegetation, up to 11,000 feet.

Columbia Spotted Frog (Rana luteiventris)
Unique Characteristics: Light colored jaw-stripe, eyes slightly upturned, yellowish, orange below.
Range: Spotty Great Basin distribution, found in Snake Valley.
Habitat: Occur in slow streams, springs, marshes, and ponds below 6,000 feet. Highly aquatic.

Bullfrog (Rana catesbiana)
Unique Characteristics: Large frog with conspicuous eardrums.
Range: NON-NATIVE to Nevada, widely introduced, responsible for many native amphibian and fish declines.
Habitat: Permanent water, below 9,000 feet.

Spadefoots (Family Pelobatidae)

Great Basin Spadefoot (Spea intermontanus)
Unique Characteristics: Verticle pupils, black spade on each hind foot, no parotoid glands, glandular boss between eyes.
Range: Throughout the Great Basin.
Habitat: Occur in loose, alkaline soils in shadscale/greasewood and sagebrush. Highly fossorial, may aestivate for a full year.

 
> Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Great Basin National Park & Vicinity (1,876 KB PDF File)

You are exiting the National Park Service website

Thank you for visiting our site.

You will now be redirected to:

We hope your visit was informative and enjoyable.
Lexington Arch

Did You Know?
Great Basin National Park is home to Lexington Arch, one of the largest limestone arches in the western United States. This six-story arch was created by the forces of weather working slowly over the span of centuries. This type of above ground limestone arch is rare.
Disclaimer Accessibility Privacy Policy FOIA Notices USA.gov

Last Updated: May 29, 2011 at 09:10 MST