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Eastern Narrow-mouthed Toad
Gastrophryne carolinensis
31.4068, -92.0706
Field Notes
Description:
Eastern narrow-mouthed toads are not really toads at all (whoa!), but instead are microhylid frogs. They have very small, pointy heads, and short arms and legs (unlike "normal" frogs, which are a different family of frogs). These guys are great at hiding, as their mottled brown/gray/tan coloration blends in with leaf litter. They are small frogs to begin with, and will hide underneath leaves and branches, or beneath hanging vegetation when in the water. Males have a distinctive "eeeeeeee" (somewhat nasaly monotone) call.
Although microhylids, North American Gastrophryne lack the brightly colored and patterned bellies of their Central and South American relatives. Mostly, these guys will have whitish bellies with dark specks or flecks.
Habitat:
Eastern narrow-mouthed toads are typically found in areas with standing water (can be flooded grasslands, or small forest ponds, and even roadside ditches). Even when no water is immediately adjacent, they can be found in moist microhabitats such as underneath rotting logs or fallen branches, and under piles of leaf litter.
This one was found at Dewey Wills WMA, in the bottomland hardwood forest, beneath the branch in the photo. I turned the branch over to get a photo, and then replaced it so the frog could stay there without too much disturbance.
Notes:
This frog was observed while collecting data for my masters project.
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