Mike Powell

It was sunny and warm on Monday, so I went off in search of dragonflies. There has already been at least one sighting of a dragonfly this month in Virginia, but it realistically is still a bit early for any to appear in the northern part of the state where I live. I searched diligently at a pond and at several small streams in Prince William County, but did not find any dragonflies or damselflies.

I was happy, however, to spot several Eastern Cricket Frogs (Acris crepitans crepitans). These frogs are tiny, with a length of about 5/8 to 1-3/8 inches (16-35 mm). One of the most distinctive things about this species is the male mating call that resembles the sound of two stones being hit together or perhaps is similar to the sound of a cricket.

According to the Virginia Herpetological Society, “This species prefers grassy margins of ponds, ditches and wetlands. Permanent bodies of water with emergent or shoreline vegetation and exposure to the sun are preferred habitat,” a perfect description of the locations where I spotted these frogs.

Each year I am confused when researching this species, because I see references to Eastern Cricket Frogs and Northern Cricket Frogs used almost interchangeably. If I understand it correctly Northern Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans) is the species name and Eastern Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans crepitans) is one of the subspecies.

As you can see from these images, cricket frogs blend in really well with their surroundings. If I had not seen these frogs jump to their new locations, I am pretty sure that I would not have seen them. I walked around all day with my 180mm macro lens attached to my camera and it served me well to capture some of the details on the bodies of the little frogs. I attempted to get as low as I could and to shoot from the side in order to get as much of the frog in focus as I could, so muddy knees were inevitably one of the “benefits” of getting these shots.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.