amphibian with leopard skin

The leopard frog is an amphibian (it lives both on land and in water) that has a very interesting appearance. It owes its name to the particular dark and oval spots that decorate its skin on the front part of its body, similar to those of leopards.

The species is common in North America and Central America, where it frequents wet and marshy places. It moves away from the water when it needs to hunt insects, but returns to it during the breeding stage.

Likewise, it easily adapts to different environments. Therefore, you can find them in thickets, forests and swamps, but also in fields and semi-urban areas where food is available.

Fun facts

• They have long and muscular hind legs, which is why they are frequently used in the gastronomic world to prepare exotic dishes.
• Mature or adult specimens are carnivorous, being able to eat a wide variety of animals, such as: beetles, ants, worms, flies, and small frogs. They can even eat birds and small snakes.
• The females lay between 1,000 and 5,000 eggs that will stick to aquatic plants until they hatch.
• Tadpoles (or young of these frogs) are herbivores, feeding mainly on algae.
• After the tadpole stage, it takes between 1 to 3 years to become mature frogs. Only a limited number make it through predators.
• Leopard spots develop as the frog approaches maturity. While the young specimens have few or no spots at all.
• They do not usually communicate with each other, only when they are looking for a partner to mate. In these cases the male makes a characteristic sound that looks like a long, loud and deep snore.