Wildlife and Wildflowers of Texas - Reptiles and Amphibians

The North American green toad, Anaxyrus debilis, also known by its old name Bufo debilis, is a species of toad found in the southwestern United States in the states of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, and Texas, as well as in northern Mexico in the states of Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Durango, and Zacatecas. It is commonly called green toad (with many variants). less ↑

Incilius nebulifer, also known as the coastal plains toad or Gulf coast toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is found on the coast of Gulf of Mexico from Veracruz in Mexico to Mississippi in the United States. It was removed from the synonymy of Incilius valliceps in 2000. It occurs in a wide range of habitats, both natural and human-altered: coastal prairies, barrier beaches, towns, etc. Breeding takes place in various... less ↑

The Rio Grande leopard frog (Lithobates berlandieri or Rana berlandieri) is a species of aquatic frog native to the southern United States in Texas and New Mexico, and south through Mexico and Central America. It is also sometimes referred to as the Mexican leopard frog. The epithet berlandieri is in honor of the Belgian naturalist Jean Louis Berlandier, who worked for the Mexican government on one of the first biological surveys of Texas. less ↑

The American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus or Rana catesbeiana), often simply known as the bullfrog in Canada and the United States, is an amphibious frog, a member of the family Ranidae, or “true frogs”. This frog has an olive green back and sides blotched with brownish markings and a whitish belly spotted with yellow or grey. The upper lip is often bright green and males have yellow throats. It inhabits large, permanent water bodies, such as swamps,... less ↑

Couch's spadefoot toad or Couch's spadefoot (Scaphiopus couchii) is a species of North American spadefoot toad (family Scaphiopodidae). The specific epithet couchii is in honor of American naturalist Darius Nash Couch, who collected the first specimen while on a personal expedition to northern Mexico to collect plant, mineral, and animal specimens for the Smithsonian Institution. less ↑

Hurter's spadefoot toad or Hurter's spadefoot (Scaphiopus hurteri) is a species of American spadefoot toad (family Scaphiopodidae) found in the south central United States (Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma); its range might extend to the adjacent northern Mexico. It was once classified as a subspecies of the eastern spadefoot toad (Scaphiopus holbrookii), but it has been granted its own species status. The specific name hurterii is in honor of the Swiss-Amer less ↑

The Great Basin spadefoot (Spea intermontana) is a species of toad in the family Scaphiopodidae. It is 3.8 to 6.3 cm long and is usually colored gray, olive or brown. Great Basin spadefoot toads have adapted to life in dry habitats. They use the hard, keratinized spade on each foot to dig a burrow, where they spend long periods during cold and dry weather. They are opportunistic hunters and will eat anything they can subdue. While their... less ↑

The New Mexico spadefoot toad (Spea multiplicata) is a species of American spadefoot toad found in the southwestern United States and Mexico. Like other species of spadefoot toad, they get their name from a distinctive spade-like projections on their hind legs which enable them to dig in sandy soils. Spea multiplicata can be identified by its wedge-shaped spade. Some sources also refer to the species as the Mexican spadefoot toad, desert spadefoot toad or sou less ↑

Eleutherodactylus cystignathoides, also known as the Rio Grande chirping frog, Mexican chirping frog, or lowland chirping frog, is a small eleutherodactylid frog. It is found from the southern United States in Texas, and in the northeastern Mexico in the states of Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Hidalgo, and Veracruz. Its range in Texas has expanded because of transport in potted plants, and there is also a likely introduced population in Louisiana. less ↑

The small-mouth salamander (Ambystoma texanum) is a species of mole salamander found in the central United States, from the Great Lakes region in Michigan to Nebraska, south to Texas, and east to Tennessee, with a population in Canada, in Pelee, Ontario. It is sometimes referred to as the Texas salamander, porphyry salamander, or the narrow-mouthed salamander. The Kelley’s Island salamander (Ambystoma nothagenes) was synonymized with A. texanum less ↑

The western slimy salamander (Plethodon albagula) is a species of salamander found in two distinct populations in the United States, one from Missouri to Oklahoma, and Arkansas, and another in south-central Texas. It is sometimes referred to as the whitethroat slimy salamander, because it was once considered to be a subspecies of the northern slimy salamander, Plethodon glutinosus. less ↑

The Cascade Caverns salamander, or Cascade Caverns neotenic salamander (Eurycea latitans) is a species of aquatic salamander endemic to Cascade Caverns in Kendall County, Texas. Like other species of cave salamanders, they are almost entirely subterranean, living in spring waters deep in limestone rock strata, so gauging the exact extent of their geographic range or even their population numbers is virtually impossible. This also leads to reduced sampling for study, which has less ↑

The Georgetown salamander or San Gabriel Springs salamander (Eurycea naufragia) is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is endemic to springs in Williamson County, Texas, near Lake Georgetown. It inhabits freshwater springs and, possibly, caves. It is threatened by habitat loss. Many of the springs where this species formerly lived have been destroyed by development, including creation of Lake Georgetown. The specific name (which means "remnants" in less ↑

The Texas blind salamander (Eurycea rathbuni) is a rare cave-dwelling troglobite amphibian native to San Marcos, Hays County, Texas, specifically the San Marcos Pool of the Edwards Aquifer. The salamander has blood-red external gills for absorbing oxygen from the water. The salamander's mature length is 13 cm (5 in). Its diet varies by what flows into its cave, including blind shrimp (Palaemonetes antrorum), snails, and amphipods. less ↑

The Blanco blind salamander (Eurycea robusta) is a species of aquatic, lungless salamander native to the United States. It is endemic to a small region of the Blanco River near San Marcos in Hays County, Texas. Its habitat, deep in limestone karst, makes collecting specimens for research particularly problematic. It is known from only a single specimen, collected in the 1950s. less ↑

The Valdina Farms salamander (Eurycea troglodytes) is a species of aquatic salamander described from Valdina Farms Sinkhole in Medina County, Texas, USA. It is sometimes referred to as the Valdina blind salamander or sinkhole salamander. Like some other species of Eurycea found in Texas, it was once classified as a subspecies of the Texas salamander, Eurycea neotenes, and believed to possibly be the result of hybridization with another species of s less ↑

The eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) is a common newt of eastern North America. It frequents small lakes, ponds, and streams or near-by wet forests. The eastern newt produces tetrodotoxin which makes the species unpalatable to predatory fish and crayfish. It has a lifespan of 12 to 15 years in the wild, and may grow to five inches in length. These animals are common aquarium pets, being either collected from the wild or sold commercially. The striking... less ↑

The lesser siren (Siren intermedia) is a species of aquatic salamander native to the eastern United States and northern Mexico. They are referred to by numerous common names, including two-legged eel, dwarf siren, and mud eel. The specific epithet intermedia denotes their intermediate size, between the greater siren, Siren lacertina, and the dwarf sirens, Pseudobranchus spp. less ↑