Spring Peepers Are An Unmistakable Sign of Spring
It’s an unmistakable sign of spring – the melodious sound of the spring peepers! What is a spring peeper you might ask? According to the Farmers' Almanac, spring peepers, pseudacris crucifer, are the most famous of all the chirping frogs. However, they’re not the only species native to North America. In fact, spring peepers belong to a group of frogs known as “chorus frogs.”
Spring peepers live in the eastern half of North America, from northern Florida up into Canada. There are also the Western and boreal chorus frogs that have a range spanning between Ohio and Arizona, and north into central Canada.
Why do the spring peepers sing? We were told by the guide at Duke Farms where we stumbled upon them, it’s their mating call. Spring peepers make a distinctive peeping noise that can sound a lot like jingling bells when there are a lot of peepers around. The males of this species are calling out to the females, who are drawn to their chirping suitors. After the frogs mate, the females will lay eggs underwater which hatch in approximately 12 days.
Unfortunately, we were not able to get a photo of any of these tiny frogs. Spring peepers will grow to only a maximum of 1.5 inches, and they are very good at hiding! Peepers especially love living in wooded wetlands or swampy areas near forested areas because they like to hibernate under tree bark or fallen logs. And that’s exactly where we found them on our trek through Duke Farms!
So Stop. Look. Listen. It’s simply mesmerizing!
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Thanks for watching! Hope you enjoyed the experience as much as we did!
Susan, Taurus and Gemini
