Field Guide

A small, olive-brown salamander with a fascinating life cycle, the central newt lives in and around woodland ponds and swamps in all but our far northwestern counties.

The western foxsnake is a moderately large snake with distinct brown blotches. In Missouri, it is rare and found only in our far northwestern counties.

Missouri's largest snake, the bullsnake may hiss loudly and vibrate its tail when alarmed, but it is nonvenomous. This species is extremely valuable in controlling destructive rodents.

The eastern copperhead is the most common venomous snake in Missouri. Its color varies from grayish brown to pinkish tan, with distinctive hourglass-shaped crossbands.

The northern watersnake and midland watersnake are Missouri's two subspecies of common watersnake. Together they occur statewide. Color is variable: gray, tan, or reddish brown with dark crossbands or blotches. The belly is cream-colored with red, brown, or black spots or half-moon markings.

The eastern yellow-bellied racer is uniformly tan, brown, olive, blue, gray, or nearly black on top, with a yellow, cream, or light blue-gray belly. It occurs nearly statewide. The southern black racer subspecies also lives in the southeastern half of the state.

The green frog looks similar to a bullfrog but is smaller and has a ridge of skin along the sides of the back that is not found on bullfrogs. It is a game animal in Missouri.

The northern leopard frog is a medium-sized frog with dark spots on the back. Two skin folds run down each side of the back. In Missouri, it only occurs in a few northwestern counties along the Iowa border.

The southern leopard frog is an excellent jumper and quickly leaps into water when startled. From March through July, the males make chuckling or quacking calls from shallow water. Occurs statewide except for the northwestern corner.