The Spring Peeper Frog is an amphibian that is known for coming out each spring year. They are a small frog that is found in wooded and grassy areas.
What Does the Spring Peeper Frog Look Like?
The Spring Peeper Frog is a very small frog, around the size of a paper clip or close to an inch long. It weighs only up to .18 ounces, so it is very light.
Most Spring Peeper Frogs have large feet so that they can climb, and they have an X type shape on their back that is formed from dark lines. They are usually brown or tan in color.
Where Does the Spring Peeper Frog Live?
The Spring Peeper Frog is usually found in areas that are full of grass or woods. They like to be close to swamps and areas that are wet. Most of these frogs are found in Canada and in parts of the United States.
They are so small that they are hard to see but they are known for more than that!
Sounds
When it is time for spring to come, the Spring Peeper starts to make a sound that is like bells or music. They will start making this sound right when spring begins.
The reason that they got their name is because they start peeping when it becomes spring, and this is similar to the American Robin that sings but a frog instead of a bird.
Behavior of the Spring Peeper Frog
The Spring Peeper is a nocturnal animal which means that it is most active during the nighttime. They stay hiding in the day so that they can hide from their predators and they hunt at night.
What Does the Spring Peeper Frog Eat?
The Spring Peeper eats small insects such as mosquitos, ants, flies, spiders and beetles. Since they are so small, they have a hard time feeding on larger animals. They are still considered carnivores which means they eat other animals or meat.
Finding a Mate
The Spring Peeper will find a mate and will lay their eggs in water, but they will leave the water after and spend the rest of their life in the forest.
When it becomes wintertime, the Spring Peeper will hibernate under logs or behind tree bark. They will not come back out until it is Spring and then they will begin singing their song again.
Predators of the Spring Peeper Frog
The predators of the Spring Peeper Frog include snakes, other frogs, skunks and beetles when they are in larva or tadpole form.
Facts About the Spring Peeper Frog:
- Even though the Spring Peeper has strong fingers to hold on to trees, most of the time it is found on the floor of the forest hiding under debris.
- Female Spring Peepers are larger and are lighter colored than the males.
- Males are the only ones that can make high pitched noises and they do this to find a mate.
- The Spring Peeper has a sac that expands in its throat like a balloon.
- Spring Peepers cannot climb high into trees and they hunt closer to the ground and close to the vegetation.
- Spring Peepers are more nocturnal, but they can hunt in day or night.
- Tadpoles of the Spring Peeper eat algae in the water.
What Did You Learn?
- What is the Spring Peeper Frog? The Spring Peeper Frog is a very small frog that is found in North America and in Canada.
- What is special about the Spring Peeper Frog? The Spring Peeper Frog is known for making a sound like music when spring starts.
- What does the Spring Peeper Frog eat? The Spring Peeper Frog eats insects, flies, and spiders.
- How big is the Spring Peeper Frog? The Spring Peeper Frog only gets around an inch or 1.5 inches long.
- Where does the Spring Peeper Frog live? The Spring Peeper Frog lives in the forest and is mostly found living on the ground because they are not good climbers.