Spring Symphony
The relative quiet of the winter changes to the sounds of serenading in the spring as our lake edges thaw and creeks and rivers start to flow. As early as late March, you may hear what sounds like a repetitive “peep”, like a phone alarm with no snooze button or a duck-like “quack” or fingernails running over the teeth of a comb. Welcome to the amorous spring calls of cottage country frogs!
A big contributor to the spring frog symphony is the small, but mighty, spring peeper. Weighing in at about 4 grams and fitting on a loonie, choruses of these tiny frogs can reach such a high-pitched crescendo that it makes conversation difficult. Recorded at over 100 decibels, the peeper turns up the volume by inflating a balloon-like sac which amplifies the sound of the air as it is forced over the vocal cords.
With a brown to tan body, a dark cross on its back and tiny toe pads, the spring peeper is difficult to spot but easy to hear. Preferring wetlands like marshes and swamps, the peeper is wary and will go silent upon your approach. Wait patiently and stay still and the calls will start up again filling the air with sound.
If lucky, this single instrument symphony may include the infusion of the duck-like quack of the wood frog. Emerging from its semi-frozen state like a four-legged zombie, the wood frog survives freezing winter temperatures by increasing the amount of glucose in their blood, a natural anti-freeze which protects their cells from rupturing. This adaptation allows the wood frog to claim the title as the most widely distributed amphibian in Canada, being found as far north as the Arctic tundra.
Returning to the forest pools and marshes where they were born, the mating competition of wood frogs can be fierce. A quacking frenzy is the prelude to a cluster of male suitors seeking out a lone female.
Wood frogs are the most terrestrial of Ontario’s frogs, primarily foraging in forests. Measuring 4-7 centimeters long, the wood frog is brown with a white line under its jaw and a distinctive black face mask making it easy to identify.
Less common, the chorus frog is a thumb-sized frog designated as a threatened species under the federal Species at Risk Act. They prefer to breed in small forest pools called vernal pools as these sites are free of predators like fish. However, vernal pools are short lived, so the chorus frog must race against time, needing to quickly complete their metamorphosis from egg to adult. Like the countdown in a James Bond movie, the tadpoles need enough time to develop legs before their breeding pool dries up. A hot, dry spring can spell disaster for this tiny frog!
This preference for breeding in shallow forest pools factors into their population decline. These types of wet landscapes are seen as unproductive and are more likely to be drained and developed.
Slightly bigger than a spring peeper with a light brown to greenish body and three dark, broken lines on their back, the chorus frog’s call has been compared to the sound of running your fingernail along the teeth of a comb adding another musical section to the early spring frog symphony.
As the spring progresses, more frogs, birds and insects will contribute to the sounds of nature, an awakening and vocal celebration of warmer temperatures, increasing daylight and the breeding season. May nature’s calls lighten your mood and put a spring in your step!
Submitted by Rick Whitteker. You can find Rick at home in the forest, as a seasoned trail guide, nature writer and passionate wildlife enthusiast in the Haliburton Highlands.
Frog photo credit – Ed Poropat
