Mud season! These two words are enough to put looks of disgust on even
the most seasoned New Englander’s face. Visions of vehicles stuck up to
their hubcaps on oozy back roads, driveways turned to quicksand and
melting, dirty snow are what come to most people’s minds when they think
of that unglamorous time of year – not quite winter, not quite spring.
But for those of us who get “burned out” on winter sports by March and
who can’t wait to get their peas and spinach planted, mud season is a
glorious time of year. The first warm days that bring on the muddy mess
also bring the promise of new life and days spent outside unencumbered
by hats, coats, long underwear and boots. But, probably the biggest reason
to celebrate mud season is a tiny, seldom seen, but often heard frog – the
spring peeper!
As days begin to warm in March and April, spring peepers emerge from
under the leaf litter and logs where they spent the winter and head for
breeding ponds and marshes. Barely an inch in length and well
camouflaged in their wetland habitats, as mentioned before, spring peepers
are more often heard than seen. You’ll know you’ve found one if you come
across a small frog (males are less than an inch long, females up to an inch
and a quarter), with tan to dark brown skin, round suction disks on the toes
and a distinctive X-shaped pattern on the back. While they can be nearly
impossible to find during the quiet non-breeding season, they readily
advertise their presence in the springtime as they congregate in marshes,
swamps and wet meadows and begin “peeping”.
Males produce a loud, high-pitched whistle or peep which is repeated
roughly once per second from dusk to dawn – as many as 4,500 times per
night! This major vocal effort is undertaken in an attempt to defend a small
territory (only four to sixteen inches square) and to attract a mate. Female
frogs seem to be attracted to the older males who tend to call faster.
Once a female has chosen a male, she moves into his territory and touches
him. The male then clasps the female from behind with his front legs and
remains attached to her, fertilizing her eggs as she swims around
depositing them singly or in small groups on underwater plants. A single
tiny female lays up to 800 eggs. Once done laying, the female leaves the
breeding pool while the male resumes peeping in the hopes of attracting
another mate.
The tiny tadpoles that hatch from the eggs are a tremendous food source for
insects, fish, turtles, birds, snakes and salamanders. In about two months,
those that survive this gauntlet of predators emerge from the pond as tiny
froglets and head for moist woods and meadows, many still sporting their
tails, where they can find insects and spiders to eat.
Although it might seem an easy task to find a calling male, when hundreds
of frogs are chorusing at the same time, it can be extremely confusing – not
to mention ear-splitting! It’s best to go peeper-hunting with a friend or two
and use a search method called triangulation. Standing about 3 feet apart,
each person tunes in on the same pepper call and tries to determine where
it’s coming from. On the count of three, each person shines their flashlight
on the spot where they think the peeper is. Wherever two or more flashlight
beams cross is a good place to start looking.
Spring wouldn’t be the same without the chirps and peeps of these tiny
frogs. By protecting the wet meadows, marshes and ponds they need for
breeding, we humans can insure there will always be plenty of peepers
brightening up an otherwise wet and muddy time of year.
About the author:
Brenda Erler is a naturalist at the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center. For
more wildlife facts and information plan a visit to the Squam Lakes Natural
Science Center. This year, 2006, is their 40th year anniversary. The Squam
Lakes Natural Science Center (SLNSC) is a non-profit environmental
education organization founded in 1966 whose mission is to advance
understanding of ecology by exploring New Hampshire’s natural world.
Using the outdoors as a classroom and live native New Hampshire wildlife
as teaching ambassadors, SLNSC enables people to discover the natural
world and learn in meaningful and memorable ways the ecological
concepts of adaptations, populations, interrelationships and habitats. They
also offer pontoon boat tours of Squam Lake. The Science Center is located
on Route 113 in Holderness, NH. Contact the Center at 603-968-7194 or their
website at www.nhnature.org.
| The Heart of New England Celebrating the unique character & culture of Maine ~ New Hampshire ~ Vermont |
Bright Spots in an Otherwise
Muddy Season
By Brenda Erler
Muddy Season
By Brenda Erler
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