Lithobates chiricahuensis
(Platz and Mecham, 1979)
LITH-oh-BAY-teez — cheer-ih-KAH-hoo-EN-sis
SSAR 9th Edition Comments:
The status of Mexican populations needs study. Rana subaquavocalis Platz, 1993, is a synonym according to Goldberg et al. (2004, Journal of Herpetology 38: 313–319), although some authors (e.g., Hillis and Wilcox, 2005, Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 34: 299–314; Dubois, 2006, Comptes rendus de l'Académie des Sciences. Paris 329: 823–840) have continued to recognize the two taxa as distinct species, without comment.
(Mendelson, Joseph R., III, Darrel R. Frost, Emily Moriarty Lemmon, and Maureen A. Donnelly. 2025. Anura – Frogs. Pages 1-9 in Kirsten E. Nicholson (Editor), Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding, 9th Edition. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, Lawrence, Kansas. 87 pp.)
Range maps are based on curated specimens and provided gratis by CNAH.
(Created by Travis W. Taggart; Version: 2023.12.14.07.50.56)
Download GeoJSON polygon range file: - 0.3 MB
Taxonomic Etymology:
Named for the mountain range in the southwestern U.S. where it was first discovered.
Lithobates — From Greek lithos (λίθος), “stone,” and bates (βάτης), “one who walks or treads.” The name can be interpreted as “rock-walker,” possibly referencing the terrestrial habits of many species in the genus.
From Greek lithos (“stone”) and bates (“one who walks or treads”)—meaning “rock-walker.”
chiricahuensis — Named after the Chiricahua Mountains of southeastern Arizona. The Latin suffix -ensis denotes “origin from,” so the name means “from the Chiricahuas.”
First instance(s) of published English names:
No historic English names have been assigned to this taxon yet.
Catalog of American Amphibians and Reptiles
Amphibian Species of the World
GenBank
USGS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database
Selected References:
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1957
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Ruibal, Rodolfo. An altitudinal and latitudinal cline in Rana pipiens. Copeia 1957(3):212-221
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1979
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Platz, James E. and John S. Mecham. Rana chiricahuensis, a new species of leopard frog (Rana pipiens complex) from Arizona. Copeia 1979:383–390
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1984
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Platz, James E. and John S. Mecham. Rana chiricahuensis. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles (347):1-2
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1985
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Hillis, David M. Evolutionary genetics and systematics of New World frogs of the genus Rana: An analysis of ribosomal DNA, allozymes, and morphology. Dissertation. University of Kansas, Lawrence. pp.
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2006
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Dubois, Alain. New proposals for naming lower-ranked taxa within the frame of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Comptes rendus de l'Académie des Sciences. Paris. (Proceedings of the Academy of Sciences) 329(10):823–840
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