Lithobates sylvaticus
Silhouette: Jose Carlos Arenas-Monroy · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
Lithobates sylvaticus or Rana sylvatica, commonly known as the wood frog, is a frog species that has a broad distribution over North America, extending from the boreal forest of the north to the southern Appalachians, with several notable disjunct populations including lowland eastern North Carolina. The wood frog has garnered attention from biologists because of its freeze tolerance, relatively great degree of terrestrialism (for a ranid), interesting habitat associations (peat bogs, vernal pools, uplands), and relatively long-range movements. It is the only North American frog that occurs north of the Arctic Circle.
The ecology and conservation of the wood frog has attracted research attention in recent years because they are often considered "obligate" breeders in ephemeral wetlands (sometimes called "vernal pools"), which are themselves more imperiled than the species that breed in them. The wood frog has been proposed to be the official state amphibian of New York.
Wood frogs range from 51 to 70 mm (2.0 to 2.8 in) in length. Females are larger than males. Adult wood frogs are usually brown, tan, or rust-colored, and usually have a dark eye mask. Individual frogs... Wikipedia →
Recording0:11
United States · 2026
© noahhen67 · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:10
United States · 2026
© Jeff W · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
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United States · 2026
© Zach Bell · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elk Island National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Wood Buffalo National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Nahanni National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Riding Mountain National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Cape Breton Highlands National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Voyageurs National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Kluane National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 9 | Isle Royale National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Gros Morne National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 13 | Denali National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | Jasper National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 15 | Banff National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anchorage | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Edmonton | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Montreal | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Calgary | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 8 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ecomuseum Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Columbus Zoo and Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Squam Lakes Natural Science Center | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Toledo Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Trailside Museum & Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Georgia Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center and Woods Garden | 🇺🇸 United States |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Wood Frog sighting in Cape Breton Highlands National Park on a given day, based on 33 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 3rd most-seen of the 9 amphibians we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June
In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Wood Frog in Cape Breton Highlands National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, the lowest month.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Wood Frog sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 15
Of the 15 parks where we can rate Wood Frog sightings, Cape Breton Highlands National Park ranks 5th at about 40%. The best odds are in Elk Island National Park (Canada, about 70%), Wood Buffalo National Park (Canada, about 70%) and Nahanni National Park (Canada, about 60%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Lithobates
The closest relatives of the Wood Frog that you can see in Cape Breton Highlands National Park (genus Lithobates, American Water Frogs) are Green Frog (about 50%), Northern Leopard Frog (about 20%) and Pickerel Frog (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Wood Frog is recorded against all the amphibians logged in Cape Breton Highlands National Park (33 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
