Genus Species: Gastrophryne carolinensis

Size: 1 - 1½”

Location: Found throughout Arkansas

Advertisement Call: Loud, long “baaa” of a young sheep, high-pitched

 

 

Description:

Notice the fat body and legs, small head, and narrow, pointed snout.  This small toad is secretive and hard to locate even when you are hovering over a calling male.  Unlike other frogs and toads, this guy has a dark belly.  The Eastern Narrow-mouthed Toad has a single vocal sac and smooth skin (very frog-like).  There is a distinct fold of skin across the head behind the eyes that can fold forward to protect the eyes from insects.  They have no tympanum.

Interesting Fact: Most frogs and toads are dark on top and light on the belly.  The dark top blends into the pond bottom for a bird looking down and the light belly blends into the light sky for a fish looking up.  The narrow-mouthed toads are an exception.

The males will start calling after a heavy rain anytime between April and August.  One observer noted that the males and females will be held together with secretions from glands on the belly of the male during amplexus.  This adaptation may have evolved due to the short arms of the males and their inability to hold on to the female.  Several hundred eggs will be laid in small groups that float on the surface of the water as a film.  The eggs hatch in two days and the tadpoles will be adult frogs in a month or less.

The Eastern Narrow-mouthed Toad is a member of the Microhylidae (Narrow-mouthed Toad) family and is a New Frog (Neobatrachia).

Click for more about the Eastern Narrow-mouthed Toad at Herps of Arkansas.