Northern Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans)

Common Name: Northern Cricket Frog, Eastern Cricket Frog
Scientific Name: Acris crepitans
Family: Hylidae – Tree Frog family
Location: United States – New York, New Jersey, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky
Size: 0.62 – 1.3 inches (1.6 – 3.5 cm)

The Northern Cricket Frog is small, warty, and is brown or gray in color with green, brown, or gray markings on their body. They have a triangle or V shaped mark between the eyes. While the Northern Cricket Frog is a member of the tree frog, it doesn’t live in the trees. They spend their time around the pond and marshes that they breed in.

Breeding is from March to July depending on localities. The male frogs call out to attract female frogs from the shallows of various water bodies such as ponds, streams, and springs. Once the female frog arrives and selects her mate, the male frog grasps her from behind in amplexus. Then, she lays her eggs and the male frog fertilizes them. The female frogs lay up to 400 eggs. Neither parent provides any parental care for their offspring.

The Northern Cricket Frog and the Blanchard Cricket Frog (Acis blanchardi) were once considered the same species with the Blanchard Cricket Frog being a subspecies. They were moved to different species due to molecular testing. The Coastal Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans paludicola) is still a subspecies of the Northern Cricket Frog.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List assesses the Northern Cricket Frog as Least Concern for Extinction. This is due to their large range and population. There is currently no major threats to the frog.