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| Green Tree Frog |
From late winter into early summer, many of the night sounds you hear are not insects at all, but members of a wide-ranging group of cricket, tree, chorus, and chirping frogs. This group of frogs and their allies have adaptations that reveal their mostly arboreal lifestyle, such as forward-facing eyes for binocular-like vision, adhesive pads on their fingers and toes, and a fondness for eating insects. Often not seen due to their diminutive size, these frogs are commonly mistaken for insects, due to their ability to produce loud and varied mating calls. Known as ‘advertisement calls’, these calls are produced by the males to attract females and warn other rival males during the breeding season.
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| Blanchard's Cricket Frog |
At ½ to 1 ½ inches, Blanchard’s Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans blanchardi) is found throughout most of the state, except for the Panhandle and West Texas. Gray to green-brown, this frog has a long rounded snout, dark bands behind its limbs, and a distinguishing triangular patch behind the eyes that points down its back. Diurnal and active all year, these frogs prefer shallow but permanent ponds with vegetation and full sun. Often seen basking during the daytime, they will jump quickly into the water or away when disturbed, and are capable of covering 6 feet in one leap! Although they are part of the tree frog family, they are much more terrestrial and are excellent swimmers. When chorusing, especially at night, the male’s call sounds like clicking small rocks or pebbles together. Mating occurs in late spring, with the female laying one egg at a time on submerged vegetation.
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| Green Tree Frog |
The Green Tree Frog (Hyla cinerea) is a common, 1 to 2 inch frog with a slender, bright green body, cream-colored belly, and white lips that extend into lateral stripes along the sides of its body. Found in the eastern third of our state, this frog walks rather than jumps when on the ground. It is nocturnal, and prefers wet areas such as swamps, edges of lakes, and stream sides. During its breeding season from March to October, the males start calling just before dark, and sound like groups of tiny ducks quacking. Females, which are slightly larger than the males and lack the wrinkled vocal pouch, lay their fertilized eggs enclosed in a jelly envelope attached to floating vegetation. Influenced by the weather, breeding often takes place during or after a rain.
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| Cliff Chirping Frog |
At ¾ to 1 ½ inches, the nocturnal Cliff Chirping Frog (Syrrhophus marnockii) is found in the cracks and crevices of limestone cliffs. Mostly green with brown mottling and dark crossbars on its hind limbs, this frog also has a proportionately large head and big eyes. It can run, leap, and hop, and its flattened body allows it to slip into cracks in the rocks to avoid predators. Sounding a bit like a shy cricket, the call of the Cliff Chirping Frog is a series of short, clear chirps and trills. While calls are made throughout the year, they are sharper and clearer when females are present. From February to December females may lay eggs as many as three times in moist leaf litter or soil, although peak breeding occurs in April and May.
When you’re out at night from winter to late spring or early summer and near one of our natural areas, sit quietly and in no time you should be able to identify the unmistakable sounds that make up the evening chorus!
