Frogs & Toads of the Southeast

by Dorcas, Mike

• ISBN13: 9780820329222
• ISBN10: 0820329223
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-07-01
• Publisher: Univ of Georgia Pr

Summary

With more than forty native and introduced species of frogs and toads occurring in the southeastern United States, the region represents the heart of frog and toad diversity in the country. Renowned herpetologists Mike Dorcas and Whit Gibbons provide us with the most comprehensive and authoritative, yet accessible and fun-to-read, guide to these sometimes wet, sometimes warty wonders of nature.Dorcas and Gibbons enumerate the distinguishing characteristics of frogs and toads, including how they are different from other amphibians and the differences between a frog and a toad. Also discussed are the morphology of frogs and toads, the main groups to be found in the Southeast, and their habitats. Individual species accounts contain a physical description of the species plus information about distribution and habitat, behavior and activity, food and feeding, predators and defense, calls and vocalizations, reproduction and description of eggs and tadpoles, and conservation. Accompanying each account are photographs illustrating typical adults and variations and distribution maps for the Southeast and the United States.Given the recent worldwide decline in amphibian populations and increasing scientific and popular concern for what these declines mean for all other organisms,Frogs and Toads of the Southeastwill appeal to people of all ages and levels of knowledge interested in natural history and conservation. The guide will help foster the growing interest in frogs and toads as well as cultivate a desire to protect and conserve these fascinating amphibians and their habitats.Features: Conservation-oriented approach Approximately 250 color photographs Approximately 45 distribution maps Clear description and photographs of each species in both tadpole and adult stages Chapters on identification, vocalizations, reproduction, global diversity (including remarkable species such as the gastric brooding frog, poison dart frogs, and saltwater frogs), and introduced species A selection of frog and toad vocalizations at www.ugapress.org/FrogsAndToads

Author Biography

Whit Gibbons is a professor of ecology at the University of Georgia.

Table of Contents

All About Frogs and Toads
Why Frogs and Toads?	p. 1
Defining the Southeast	p. 2
Characteristics of Frogs and Toads	p. 3
Activity and Energy	p. 4
The Difference between Frogs and Toads	p. 7
Diversity of Anurans in the Southeast	p. 7
Frogs and Toads as Predators	p. 8
Defense Mechanisms	p. 9
Reproduction	p. 10
Vocalizations	p. 14
Diversity around the World	p. 18
Introduced Species	p. 21
Identifying Frogs and Toads	p. 24
Naming Frogs and Toads	p. 30
Species Accounts
Introduction	p. 33
Basic Features of the Species Accounts	p. 34
Cricket Frogs, Chorus Frogs, and Treefrogs	p. 36
True Frogs	p. 106
True Toads	p. 155
Other Frogs and Toads	p. 179
People and Frogs and Toads
What Is a Herpelologist?	p. 201
Conservation	p. 208
Frogs and Toads as Pets	p. 215
Calling Months	p. 219
What Kinds of Frogs & Toads Are Found in Your State?	p. 220
Glossary	p. 223
Further Reading	p. 227
Index of Scientific Names	p. 233
Index of Common Names	p. 235
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.