Wildlife Watching Wednesday: Blanchard’s Cricket Frogs

By: Tom Berg

There are many species of frogs in the United States, and one of the smaller species is the very interesting Blanchard’s Cricket Frog. These tiny frogs are usually only an inch or so long, and full-grown adults measure no more than an inch and a half in length. They can be mostly brown, green or gray (or a combination of these colors), depending on their surroundings. They are very good at blending in with their local background.

Since most frogs have smooth skin, the Blanchard’s cricket frog can be distinguished from other small frogs by their warty skin. Their small size, and the fact that they have two white warts or bumps on their back-sides also helps identify them. The white spots are pretty well hidden in the photo of the individual shown here, though.

Blanchard’s cricket frogs are found throughout most of the Midwest, from southern Wisconsin and southern Michigan south throughout the central states all the way down to Texas. They are typically most common along the banks of creeks, streams and rivers. Like all frogs, they need water for laying their eggs and water for the young tadpoles to live in once the eggs hatch.

Cricket frogs eat a variety of insects and small creatures like mayflies, water beetles, spiders, flies and even tiny crayfish. Because cricket frogs are very small themselves, they are preyed upon by many larger predators. Herons, owls, snakes, raccoons, opossums, mink and skunks are all major predators of these small frogs. Fish also eat them when the frogs are hunting in the water, and fish eat many cricket frog tadpoles, too.

When warm weather arrives in late spring, male Blanchard’s cricket frogs call to their mates both day and night. Their call sounds like two glass marbles being hit together. The high-pitched clicks start out slowly and increase quickly. People can imitate the sound by picking up two round stones at the water’s edge and tapping them together faster and faster. If cricket frogs are nearby, they often answer with their own clicking call!

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