What is the largest frog species native to North America?

The largest frog species native to North America is the American bullfrog, Lithobates catesbeianus. It is the largest true frog in North America and is especially associated with the eastern United States and southern Canada.

American bullfrogs prefer large, permanent bodies of water such as ponds, lakes, swamps, reservoirs, and canals. Their powerful hind legs help them leap away from danger, while their deep call—often compared with a bull’s bellow—gives the species its common name. Males typically have conspicuously large circular eardrums, called tympana, behind the eyes.

The species is a broad, opportunistic predator. Adults eat insects, crayfish, fish, snakes, birds, small mammals, and other amphibians, including smaller frogs. This appetite becomes a conservation problem when bullfrogs are introduced outside their native range, where they can compete with or prey on native species and may spread amphibian diseases.

A common mix-up is confusing “largest frog in North America” with “largest frog in the world.” The global record belongs to Africa’s goliath frog, which is much larger. The American bullfrog is the correct answer for the North American native-frog question.