Key Identification Features
- The hind legs are short, and at the back of each hind foot sits a yellowish bony protuberance called the inner metatarsal tubercle, or spade — the feature that gives the species its common name.
- A recent study found no haplotype segregation among Northern Italian populations, meaning these populations do not belong to a separate distinct subspecies.
- Populations from eastern Europe are sufficiently genetically distinct that they may qualify for separate species status as Pelobates vespertinus.
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