How to identify it
Gray, brown, tan or greenish with dark spots or small blotches on the back and upper legs; faint light stripes occasionally on the back and sides. [1][2]
Red-tipped tubercles scattered over the back, head and upper surfaces of the legs; large eyes; short spade-shaped tubercle on the underside of each hind foot. [1][2]
About 2.5 in (6 cm) snout-vent length. [1][2]
Unlike the plains spadefoot, it has no bony boss between the eyes; it is reported to smell like peanuts when handled. [1][2]
Compared with the plains spadefoot (spea bombifrons): Has a hard bony boss between the eyes and does not smell of peanuts; its call is a brief snore, faster than the Mexican spadefoot's long stuttering snore. [1][2]
Species it is confused with
Check these before deciding what you are looking at. If you are not certain what it is, do not shoot.
- Plains spadefoot · Spea bombifrons
Where it lives
Desert grassland, shortgrass plains, creosote bush, sagebrush and semi-desert shrubland, mixed grassland-chaparral, pinyon-juniper and pine-oak woodland and open pine forest; breeds in temporary pools formed by heavy rain. [1][2]
How it behaves
Active at night, usually during humid or wet periods of spring and summer (late March-September in northern Texas). [1][2]
Emerges after heavy rain; breeding choruses last 1-2 days and eggs hatch in about 2 days; ponds often dry before metamorphosis. [1][2]
Burrows underground or uses rodent burrows when inactive; migrates between breeding pools and non-breeding terrestrial habitat. [1][2]
Tadpoles occur as a carnivorous morph (mainly fairy shrimp) and an omnivorous morph that eats more detritus and algae. [1][2]
Limited legal take
Legal take of this species exists only under narrow conditions — a quota, a draw, a permit, a small area, or animals released or held on private land — set by the authorities below. Nowhere else is a legal opportunity implied, and Hunt shows one only where a certified rule establishes it.
Where legal take is listed
- Arizona — amphibian take · Arizona Reptile and Amphibian Regulations 2026-2030
- Utah — amphibian take · Reptile and amphibian species classification tables (R657-53), updated Apr. 22, 2026
Being listed is not an open season. Seasons, zones, licences, methods and limits decide whether this animal may be taken on a given day and place — check Hunt or the authority before you go. Listings read 2026-09-30.
Where it is found
Southeastern Utah, southern Colorado and northern Oklahoma south through Arizona, New Mexico and western Texas to Mexico (Guerrero and Oaxaca); up to about 2,470 m. Not in Canada.
Sources
Every claim above is attributed to one of these published sources.
NatureServe · reviewed 2026-09-30
NatureServe
Fort Hays State University Sternberg Museum · reviewed 2026-09-30
Fort Hays State University Sternberg Museum