Spring peeper (Pseudacris crucifer).
The early-spring frog with a sharp birdlike call.
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The following Xeno-Canto recordings were used in this episode:
- Doug Hynes, XC935226 (Individual)
- “Sleigh bell” chorus by Rob Kanter
Sources and more:
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Among the first of the early spring singers is a tiny frog of wet woodlands and swampy forests. It frequents vernal pools in these places and issues its sharp birdlike calls with a volume that is surprising for a frog that’s an inch long. Its range is extensive; covering nearly all of the eastern forested half of north America.
The marks on its back set it apart from its chorus frog cousins. Whereas the chorus frogs have parallel lines, this frog’s are intersecting, forming an X on the back of its tan body.
This is the Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer) from the tree frog family Hyllidae
Like the chorus frogs, the spring peeper is a member of the Pseudacris genus and shares their small size and propensity to call in the early spring. Their bodies can be quite variable in color - ranging from gray to pinkish-brown to yellow, though each of these color variations will have the x on the back. It's commonly said that a group of spring peepers in the distance sounds like sleigh bells (pause for distant chorus). You can hear these sleigh bells for yourself when the frogs are calling between march and june. Here’s the Spring Peeper again.
Thank you to Doug Hines on Xeno-Canto dot org for the frog call and to Rob Kanter for his help with this episode and for his recording of those sleigh bell chorus calls...and thank you for tuning in to learn a new wild voice with Illinois Extension.