HerpIndiana

Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer)

Adult from Clinton County

Description

Morphology: A small tan to orangish brown frog with a distinctive X pattern dorsally. The dorsal pattern may not always appear like a perfect X, but there is always some patterning dorsally. The belly of this frog is white. The legs are usually banded (Conant and Collins 1998, 540).

Size: Spring Peepers generally grow to around 1in SV length (Conant and Collins 1998, 540).

Larvae: A small and dark tadpole that generally grows to around 1in in length. The tailfin is clear with dark mottling around the edges (Minton 2001, 122)).

Eggs: Females lay their eggs in ribbons of 800 to 1,000 eggs (Minton 2001, 124).

Similar Species: This species is most easily distinguished from the Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris triseriata and Pseudacris feriarum) by its dorsal pattern. The two species of Chorus Frogs have either dorsal stripes or blotches while this species tends to have an X or cross shaped pattern dorsally.

Distribution

Spring Peepers are found throughout the eastern United States and Canada, but are absent from much of Florida (Conant and Collins 1998, 541).

Spring Peepers are common throughout Indiana (Minton 2001, 122).

Activity

Spring Peepers are most active in rainy weather from March to November, but will call sporadically on warm, rainy, winter days.

Breeding Season: Spring Peepers may call periodically throughout the fall and winter, but do not start breeding until the first warm rains of spring. In southern Indiana, January and February rains may spark some breeding activity. Breeding generally lasts into April or May. After beind deposited, the eggs take a week or more to hatch and the larvae generally transform during June or July (Minton 2001, 124)

Taxonomy

The Northern Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer crucifer) is the only subspecies that occurs in Indiana. The Spring Peeper belongs to the genus Pseudacris and is in the family Hylidae which is represented in Indiana by 7 different species.

Natural History

Habitat: Upland woods and marshes are the favored habitat of this species, but open fields near wooded areas are also inhabited. Seasonal pools or permanenet ponds are a requirement for breeding. During the fall and on warm winter days this frog can be heard calling sporadically, usually from under leaf litter or plant matter. On rainy nights throughout the spring and summer this frog can be found crossing roads.

Feeding: Spring Peepers feed on small terrestrial invertebrates (Minton 2001, 124).

Breeding: In Indiana, this frog utilizes ephemeral pools, roadside ditches, flooded fields, marshes, and woodland ponds. Amplexus often takes place under water, where the females attach their eggs to small twigs and the males fertilize them externally.

Call: Spring Peepers have a high pitched single note "peep" call. This note is repeated every one second or so (Minton 2001, 123)

Conservation: Spring Peepers appear to be doing quite well throughout the state and they persist even in small woodlots in and around suburban areas. Minton states that "its numbers seem to have increased since 1970, particularly in the southwestern counties" (Minton 2001, 122).