Gopher-Frog. Snake Frog. Florida Gopher 



Frog. Southern Gopher 



Frog. Florida Frog. 



Plate LVII. i, 5. Males 

 (x§).2. Male. (Xf). 3- Male 

 croaking (x|).4- Eggs (xi). 



Rana aesopus (Cope). 



Range: South Carolina to 

 Florida and Louisiana. 



Habitat: Almost solely in 

 the borrows of the gopher 

 turtle, which is common in 

 the higher pine barrens and 

 sandy hills. They breed in 

 cypress and open ponds. We 

 saw one go into a small 

 opening which looked like a 

 rat hole. The hole extended 

 18 inches into the ground and 

 the end was only 9-12 inches 

 below ground. There we found 

 a female gopher frog. Near 

 another turtle's burrow, we 

 saw a similar hole with a 

 smooth worn spot about 8-12 

 inches away, the resting place 

 of the frog. 



Size: Adults, 2 3/4-4 1/3 

 inches. (Males, 68-101 mm. 

 Females, 77-108 mm.). 



General appearance: This 

 large heavy-bodied gray frog, 

 is broad forward and has a 

 slender waist. It has a cavern- 

 ous mouth and prominent 

 eyes. The gray of the back is 

 finely speckled with black 

 dots and marked with three 

 or four rows of round dark 

 spots between and often cross- 

 ing the dorsolateral folds. 

 There are many more along 

 the sides. The arms and legs 



I48 



