Amphibians

Amphibians are animals that usually begin life in the water with a set of gills. Most amphibians lose these gills when they become adults and gain the ability to live on land. Amphibians found at Sleeping Bear Dunes include frogs, toads, and salamanders. These animals are important links in the food web on land and in the water. They are sensitive to change, so their health can reflect the health of an ecosystem. A few amphibians you might come across during your visit here are listed below.

 

 

Frogs and Toads

 

Gray treefrog resting on a fern leaf

NPS Photo / K. Ferguson

Gray Treefrog (Dryophytes versicolor)

One of the most acrobatic frogs found at Sleeping Bear Dunes is the gray treefrog. This species is fairly small with gray skin, growing to around 2 inches long. They are skilled climbers and are often found in places where you wouldn’t expect to find a frog, like in a tree. They can tolerate life around humans and can sometimes be found on sticking to walls and windows. A gray treefrog’s diet is mostly composed of small insects, but they are not picky eaters. They can change their skin color and pattern to blend in with their surroundings. Since they spend a lot of time exposed, they have adapted to survive cold weather.

 

Green Frog sailing across Narada Lake on a birch bark raft

NPS Photo / M. Adams

Northern Green Frog (Lithobates clamitans melanota)

The most common frog to find in the lakes and wetlands of Sleeping Bear Dunes is the Green Frog. They can often be found sitting on floating plants or basking on shorelines. They have bright green heads, and their body color ranges from brown to dark green. Green Frogs have two skin folds running down their backs, which bullfrogs lack. This species can grow to around 4 inches long, not counting the long legs. Tadpoles and adults eat anything they can swallow whole. Green Frogs cannot play instruments, even though their call sounds like someone plucking a banjo string.

 

Wood frog emerging from a spring pool

NPS Photo

Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus)

This frog species blends in very well to the forest floor and is not seen often. They grow to around 3 inches long and are brown overall with a dark eye mask. They roam through fallen leaves to forage for insects and worms. During winter, most other frogs burrow into soil or mud and hibernate. Wood frogs survive by crawling under leaves and freezing solid. Their heart and lungs totally stop, because they are frozen. They survive winter by increasing their blood sugar, which prevents ice crystals from damaging their cells. Wood frogs are one of the first amphibians to emerge in spring after the first thaw.

 

Spring peeper camouflaged in a tree hollow

NPS Photo / M Adams

Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer)

This species gets its name for their loud chirping calls, which are first heard in early spring. Spring peepers prefer to live in wetlands during breeding season but also live in fields and forests. They grow to around an inch long, and they are grayish brown with a dark X-shaped mark on their back. They can slowly change the color of their skin to match their surroundings. Outside of spring, this species scavenges for small insects on the ground and is rarely seen. Like wood frogs, spring peepers can survive being frozen.

 

Eastern American toad in a defensive stance

NPS Photo / L. Peck

Eastern American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus)

Toads have many myths associated with them. They will not give you warts if you touch them. They probably would not enjoy being tossed in a witch’s cauldron either. They are dry and covered in bumps however, which secrete poison. The tadpoles of this species also create poisons that keep hungry fish away. American toads are usually light brown with darker spots, and they grow to around 3 inches long. They hunt worms and insects by sitting in one spot and pouncing when they pass by.

 

Salamanders

 

An adult red-backed salamander stands watch on a log

NPS Photo / K. Ferguson

Eastern Red-backed Salamander (Plethodon cinereus)

One of the most abundant animals at Sleeping Bear Dunes is the red-backed salamander. In some forests, all these salamanders combined may outweigh all the deer combined! They grow to around 4 inches long and are usually dark brown with a red back stripe. They mostly eat small arthropods like spiders, insects, and centipedes. Like some other salamanders, this species lacks internal lungs and breathes through its skin. Their skin needs to stay moist, so they spend most of their time hiding under wet logs.

 

Spotted salamander patrolling the forest floor

NPS Photo / K. Ferguson

Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum)

This species is a kind of mole salamander, which means that it spends most of its time underground. They grow to around 9 inches long and are dark grey with yellow spots. They eat worms, insects, and other invertebrates they find on the forest floor. When threatened by predators, these salamanders secrete poison from their skin. A special type of algae grows in the eggs of this species, which provides the embryos with oxygen and sugar.

 

Mudpuppy on the bottom of a collection tank

USFWS Photo / R. Hagerty

Common Mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus)

The only salamander at Sleeping Bear Dunes that stays in water its whole life is the common mudpuppy. Adults keep their larval gills and use them to breathe in streams and lakes. They grow to be over a foot long and are dark brown overall with a set of red feathery gills. Mudpuppies are carnivores, and they eat any aquatic animal that can fit in their mouths. Their presence can indicate a healthy ecosystem, since they are sensitive to water pollution.

 

Central newt in the "red eft" phase creeping across a log

NPS Photo / K. Ferguson

Central Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens louisianensis)

The most colorful salamander found at Sleeping Bear Dunes is the central newt. They grow to around 4 inches long and change appearance during different life stages. Juvenile central newts, known as red efts, are bright orange and live on land. Their bright color serves as a warning to predators that they can be quite toxic. When they transform into semiaquatic adults, they become darker and grow paddle-like tails. During every life stage, they eat a large number of insects, worms, and aquatic larvae.

 

Full Amphibian List

 

The amphibians described above are only a small selection of what can be found at Sleeping Bear Dunes. Use the tool below to generate a list of all amphibian species found in the Lakeshore. Select "amphibians" as the species category. A checklist will include all amphibian species that are confirmed to live in the park. A full list will include all confirmed amphibian species as well as false reports and locally extinct species.

 

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Species Attribute Definitions

Definitions

Occurrence

Occurrence values are defined below. One or more Occurrence Tags may be associated with each Occurrence value.

Present: Species occurs in park; current, reliable evidence available.

Probably Present: High confidence species occurs in park but current, verified evidence needed.

Unconfirmed: Species is attributed to park but evidence is weak or absent.

Not In Park: Species is not known to occur in park.

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Occurrence Tags

Adjacent: Species is known to occur in areas near to or contiguous with park boundaries.

False Report: Species was reported to occur within the park, but current evidence indicates the report was based on misidentification, a taxonomic concept no longer accepted, or other similar problem of error or interpretation.

Historical: Species' historical occurrence in park is documented. Assigned based on judgment as opposed to determination based on age of the most recent evidence.

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Abundance

Abundant:

• Animals: May be seen daily, in suitable habitat and season, and counted in relatively large numbers.
• Plants: Large number of individuals; wide ecological amplitude or occurring in habitats covering a large portion of the park.

Common:

• Animals: May be seen daily, in suitable habitat and season, but not in large numbers.
• Plants: Large numbers of individuals predictably occurring in commonly encountered habitats but not those covering a large portion of the park.

Uncommon:

• Animals: Likely to be seen monthly in appropriate habitat and season. May be locally common.
• Plants: Few to moderate numbers of individuals; occurring either sporadically in commonly encountered habitats or in uncommon habitats.

Rare:

• Animals: Present, but usually seen only a few times each year.
• Plants: Few individuals, usually restricted to small areas of rare habitat.

Occasional:

• Animals: Occurs in the park at least once every few years, varying in numbers, but not necessarily every year.
• Plants: Abundance variable from year to year (e.g., desert plants).

Unknown: Abundance unknown

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Nativeness

Native: Species naturally occurs in park or region.

Non-native: Species occurs on park lands as a result of deliberate or accidental human activities.

Unknown: Nativeness status is unknown or ambiguous.

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List Differences

The Checklist contains only those species that are designated as "present" or "probably present" in the park.

The Full List includes all the checklist species in addition to species that are unconfirmed, historically detected, or incorrectly reported as being found in the park. The full list also contains species that are "in review" because their status in the park hasn't been fully determined. Additional details about the status of each species is included in the full list.

The checklist will almost always contain fewer species than the full list.

Select a Park:

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Select a Species Category (optional):

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Species attribute definitions

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