Division of Vertebrate Zoology | Herpetology | Contributors
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The 22 amphibian and 23 reptile species (not including sea
turtles) living wild in Connecticut represent a diversity of habitat
needs in addition to diversity of species. Although Connecticut is a
small state, the available habitat is diverse. Amphibian and reptile
species in Connecticut include species dependant on vernal pools and
fragile trap-rock habitat. Some species live in tidal salt marshes,
while others require cool, clean mountain streams. Some migrate each
fall to ancestral hibernation dens, while others burrow deep into mud in
the bottom of a pond to survive the cold New England winters.
Connecticut’s amphibians and reptiles can be found high in trees and
deep underground.
Sadly, because some of these species require very specific
habitats, they are subject to extinction through habitat loss. Many
species have been given some protection, with a few being classified as
endangered or threatened by the State of Connecticut. Hopefully, through
public education and continued research and understanding, conservation
efforts will succeed and those few species truly in danger of
extinction will continue to be valued members of the herpetofaunal
diversity of Connecticut.
Amphibians, of which there are more than 5,700 living species in
the world, include the worm-like caecilians, tailed salamanders, and
tail-less frogs and toads. Like fishes, reptiles, birds and mammals,
amphibians are vertebrates. Most have a moist, outer layer of skin made
up of dead cells, which protects the animals against rapid water loss
through evaporation. Most amphibians lead a dual existence, spending
part of their life in water, part on land. They lay gelatinous-covered
eggs in a moist environment, usually in water. Fertilization is external
in most frogs and toads and internal in most salamanders. All
amphibians are carnivorous as adults.
Connecticut has 12 species of salamander and 10 species of frog.
There are no caecilians in the United States. Choose from the lists
below to learn more about a species.
— By Jim Sirch
Frogs and Toads (Amphibia: Anura)
All Connecticut species have an aquatic larval stage of life;
these larvae are commonly known as tadpoles. The tadpole gradually grows
legs and lungs to complete its metamorphosis into an adult frog or toad. Some tadpoles complete metamorphosis in only a few weeks, while others take a few years.
There are 10 species of frogs and toads native to Connecticut.
American Toad Bufo americanus
Fowler’s Toad Bufo fowleri
Gray Treefrog Hyla versicolor
Spring Peeper Pseudacris crucifer
American Bullfrog Rana catesbeiana
Green Frog Rana clamitans
Northern Leopard Frog Rana pipiens
Pickerel Frog Rana palustris
Wood Frog Rana sylvatica
Eastern Spadefoot Toad Scaphiopus holbrooki
Salamanders (Amphibia: Caudata)
Salamanders are often very secretive in the wild. Many of the
more than 120 species of this group of amphibians in the United States
are only regularly seen during the breeding season.
Salamanders have a wider array of life history traits than do
frogs. While most salamanders spawn in the water and have a larval stage
that metamorphoses into a terrestrial adult, some develop directly from
eggs into small salamanders, thus bypassing the aquatic larval stage
entirely (genus Plethodon). Still others have a larval stage that lasts for the entire life of the animal, with aquatic adults with gills (genus Necturus).
There are 12 species of salamander in Connecticut.
Blue-spotted Salamander Ambystoma laterale
Jefferson Salamander Ambystoma jeffersonianum
Marbled Salamander Ambystoma opacum
Spotted Salamander Ambystoma maculatum
Four-toed Salamander Hemidactylum scutatum
Northern Dusky Salamander Desmognathus fuscus
Northern Spring Salamander Gyrinophilus poryphoriticus
Northern Two-lined Salamander Eurycea bislineata
Red-backed Salamander Plethodon cinereus
Slimy Salamander Plethodon glutinosus
Mudpuppy Necturus maculosus
Red-spotted Newt Notopthalmus viridescens
Reptiles are a group of vertebrates with amniotic eggs and
scales covering their bodies. A highly diverse group, modern reptiles
include crocodilians, turtles, snakes and lizards. They range in size
from a few inches or centimeters for a small lizard, to 30 feet (10 m)
or more for the largest snakes. Reptiles have colonized nearly every
habitat on earth and can be found on every continent except Antarctica.
While most lay eggs, some are live-bearing. Some species are comprised
entirely of females and reproduce asexually through a process known as parthenogenesis. All reptiles are ectothermic
(“cold-blooded”) and derive body heat from the environment rather than
from metabolism. Over 6,000 reptile species are known to science.
There are 28 native species of reptiles in Connecticut. Choose from the lists below to learn more about a species.
Turtles (Reptilia: Chelonia)
Turtles are a confusing group of reptiles. Although often
thought of as evolutionarily ancient, they have many characteristics not
shared by any other vertebrates, and thus are difficult to place into
the phylogeny of reptiles. For instance, turtles are the only vertebrate
animals with a bony shell. Most of the 300 or so species of turtle in
the world are aquatic or semi-aquatic, with a few (the tortoises and a
few others) adapted to a terrestrial life.
There are 8 species of freshwater or terrestrial turtle in
Connecticut. A few species of sea turtle also frequent Long Island
Sound.
Common Snapping Turtle Chelydra serpentina
Bog Turtle Glyptemys muhlenbergii
Eastern Box Turtle Terrapene carolina carolina
Eastern Painted Turtle Chrysemys picta marginata
Northern Diamondback Terrapin Malachlemys terrapin terrapin
Spotted Turtle Clemmys guttata
Wood Turtle Glyptemys insculpta
Common Musk Turtle Sternotherus odoratus
Snakes (Reptilia: Squamata)
There are over 2,500 species of snake on earth. They live in a
wide variety of habitats and range in size from under a foot (30 cm) to
over 30 feet (10 m). All snakes are predators and most are nonvenomous.
While most snakes lay eggs, many are live-bearing, including a few
species native to Connecticut.
There are 14 species of snake native to Connecticut.
Black Rat Snake Elaphe obsoleta obsoleta
Eastern Garter Snake Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis
Eastern Hognose Snake Heterodon platyrhinos
Eastern Milk Snake Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum
Eastern Ribbon Snake Thamnophis sauritus
Eastern Worm Snake Carphophis amoenis
Northern Black Racer Coluber constrictor constrictor
Northern Brown Snake Storeria dekayi
Northern Redbelly Snake Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata
Northern Ringneck Snake Diadophus punctatus
Northern Water Snake Nerodia sipedon sipedon
Smooth Green Snake Opheodrys vernalis
Northern Copperhead Agkistrodon contortix mokasen
Timber Rattlesnake Crotalus horridus
Lizards are very closely related to snakes. Lizards represent
the most diverse group of reptiles on earth in terms of habitat use,
body shape and size, and range in size from tiny geckos barely 1.5
inches (3.8 cm) in total length, to Komodo monitor lizards reaching over
9 feet (270 cm). Some lizards have highly modified feet for climbing
smooth surfaces, while others are completely arboreal, with feet that
act like pincers to grasp twigs. Still others have lost their limbs
entirely and dig in the ground. There are even at least 3 groups of
lizard that glide like flying squirrels, and one species which
reportedly glows in the dark.
Of the estimated 3,000 species of lizard currently recognized
by science, only one—currently listed as a threatened species—is native
to Connecticut.
Scincidae (Skinks)
Five-lined Skink Plestiodon fasciatus
Contributors
Send comments to Gregory Watkins-Colwell.
Contributors to this multi-authored guide include:
Chad Arment
Hank Gruner
Science Center of Connecticut
Richard Haley
Goodwin Conservation Center
Charles M. Sikorski, Jr.
James Sirch
Department of Public Education, Yale Peabody Museum
Gregory J. Watkins-Colwell
Division of Vertebrate Zoology, Yale Peabody Museum
From The Calls of Frogs and Toads [book and CD-ROM]
Published March 2004 by Stackpole Books: 1.800.732.3669.
© 1994 Lang Elliott/NatureSound Studio. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
http://www.naturesound.com/stackpole/frogs.html
Suzanne L. Collins
Jim Demirjian
Twan Leenders
Division of Vertebrate Zoology, Yale Peabody Museum
Copeland MacClintock
Division of Invertebrate Paleontology, Yale Peabody Museum
Peter Warny
Gregory J. Watkins-Colwell
Division of Vertebrate Zoology, Yale Peabody Museum
Citation
This online guide can be cited as follows:
Watkins-Colwell , Gregory J. , editor. Online Guide to the
Amphibians and Reptiles of Connecticut [Internet]. New Haven (CT):
Peabody Museum of Natural History, Yale University; c. 2005 [updated 2
Feb 2005; cited give your date of access here]. Available from: http://www.peabody.yale.edu/collections/vz/her_guide.html
Last updated: 2 February 2005
© 2005 Peabody Museum of Natural History, Yale University. All rights reserved.
