Its specific name was chosen by the Italian herpetologist Lorenzo Camerano in 1882, in order to honour his master Michele Lessona.

[4] The pool frog is found across most of central Europe from the west coast of northern France to the Western part of Russia.

[4] The pool frog is found in damp areas with dense vegetation, or in calm, slow flowing rivers, ponds, bogs or marshes.

[5] Pelophylax lessonae is one of only four amphibian species recognized by the UK government as protected under its Biodiversity Action Plan.

An English Nature reintroduction project is underway in Breckland, where pool frogs were introduced to a single site in 2005.