Tuesday, July 2, 2013

A Day Fit for Frogs


Following recent heavy rains, the humidity was extreme on today's shortened walk. Several kinds of frogs responded by calling, something most usually do after dark. First there was the "!glug" of bronze frogs, then the "click, click" of cricket frogs. Almost together squirrel treefrogs sounded off with their rasping calls, and green treefrogs (image above) chimed in with their call, which reminds some of the sound of cowbells. Pig frogs joined the fray with their namesake snorts. A while later I heard the high-pitched buzz of a narrow-mouth frog calling from a puddle beside the path. There may have been other species whose calls I don't recognize. Missing this morning was the booming call of bullfrogs, which we hear most days, often from storm sewers, where their sound is widely transmitted and weirdly amplified.