The moor frog Rana arvalis is a very rare species in France. It is found in a very limited number of localities in Alsace, and in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais regions. There are some historical records of the species in the small department of Territoire-de-Belfort, and in the south of Alsace, but the species has not been found there for more than 20 years now.

Here are two interesting references about the occurence of the species in Nord-Pas-de-Calais:

Zuiderwijk A. 1980 - Amphibian distribution patterns in Western Europe. Bijdragen tot de Dierkunde, 50 (1): 52-72

This article reports the observation of the species during the 1970's in the locality of Ambleteuse near Boulogne-sur-Mer in the Pas-de-Calais department.

Caby B., Constantin de Magny G., Godin J. & Marchyllie M. 2000 - Observation de la Grenouille des champs, Nilsson, 1842 (Anura, Ranidae) dans le département du Nord (France). Bulletin de la Société herpétologique de France 95 : 5-18

This article is the first to record the occurrence of the species in the Nord department, with photographs.

Recently, Laurenti Verlag publised two interesting books about the species. First, a monograph in German:

Glandt D., 2006 - Der Moorfrosch. Einheit und Vielfalt einer Braunfroschart. Beiheft der Zeitschrift für Feldherpetologie, 10. Laurenti Verlag, Bielefeld, 160 p.

And second, a volume with articles about the species throughout its whole range, but mainly Europe. The articles are wether in German or in English:

Glandt D. and Jehle R. (eds.). Der Moorfrosch/The Moor Frog. Zeitschrift für Feldherpetologie, Supplement 13, Laurenti Verlag, 496 p.



The moor frog has been listed as Criticaly Endangered in the French IUCN Red List that was published by the French Committee of the IUCN in 2008. A brochure with this list can be downloaded as a pdf file by clicking on this link. The brochure is in French, and it contains both the amphibians list and the reptiles list of metropolitan France of the French Red List of fauna and flora.

Here are two pictures of Rana arvalis that I shot in Alsace :



Subadult Rana arvalis that I shot in Alsace, France, on June 2006. Note the pointed snout, the clear-colored dorsolateral folds and the dark marblings on the flanks.



Close-up of the same individual. Note the small tympanum, and the interorbital space between the eye and the tympanum.