Things I’ve Heard but Never Seen- Spring Peepers

How many things have you heard but never seen? One that confounds me every year is a little frog.

Today was a very windy and warm day, warm enough to make it easy to work up a sweat while helping Rob with firewood this morning. I can’t remember a sweaty February day before. The peepers must think it is time for spring. They were singing full-blast at one particular pond. Usually we don’t hear these little singers until March.

When I say *full-blast* I mean very, very loudly. The noise of the frog song was so loud, it was literally deafening.

Listen to them.

I’ve never heard them so loud before. At our pond there were none. Ours is a spring-fed pond with colder water than the rain-catch cow pond where this audio was recorded, so maybe that makes a difference to them. I never hear them in the creek, either.

A couple of years ago, I mentioned how loud the peepers were. But the ones I heard today trumped those.

With so many voices you’d think there’d be frogs everywhere. I’m sure they were there, I could hear them very loudly. But I could not find a single one! I wanted to get a photo to go with the audio. Not one in sight. I’ve seen pictures of them on the internet but until I’ve actually seen one of our own, how can I be certain ours look the same?

A spring peeper. Something I've often heard but never seen.
By USGS – http://cars.er.usgs.gov/herps/Frogs_and_Toads/P_crucifer/p_crucifer.html, Public Domain, Link

How can something be so often heard but never seen? A frog is a physical thing, so it should be possible. Well, of course it’s possible. Someone at the USGS obviously got a sight of one. They’re not like the wind, which is often heard but never seen. Signs that the wind exists can be seen, like debris flying or limbs swaying, but the wind itself isn’t visible. That’s not so with spring peepers. There should be a frog somewhere to go with that noise, haha.

They’re just very good at hiding. Of course, it *sounded* like they were in the pond. But maybe they were all *around* the pond instead. I looked there too, but still no sighting.

So for now, a spring peeper remains for me a thing heard but not seen.

Comments

4 responses to “Things I’ve Heard but Never Seen- Spring Peepers”

  1. oneforestfragment Avatar

    Great post! Maybe the elusive nature of their calls helps protect from predation? I’ve had the same experience, where they’re all around me but completely invisible.

    1. Madison Avatar

      I’ve got a plan to find one. What I suspect happens is that they go silent when you get near one, but all of the others keep peeping so you can’t tell. LOL. I’m going to sit out there one day and just wait, and wait and wait until one near me can be differentiated from the rest and then I’ll find it. And when I do, I’ll take a picture of it. Hahaha, it’s just so infuriating to be able to hear something and never ever see it! This difficulty in finding one most surely is a good defense mechanism, you’re right.

  2. Jenny Young Avatar

    We have a contest in our family to see who hears the first peepers in the spring. It’s usually my husband that wins & it’s usually in February. We live in western Benton county so not too far from you.

    We also see who spots the first eagle in the fall, though that may change because we’ve had them year round in our area for a couple of years now. And obviously, who spots the first of each bud throughout the year.

    1. Madison Avatar

      That sounds like a fun way to mark the passing of the seasons! I usually make a post when I hear the first peepers, or at least enough of them to get a good audio, but it seems like it’s been in March in previous years. I’ll pay closer attention in years to come. We’re also always watching for the first eagle, and I watch the woodlands for the first of the spring flowers every year, too. Thanks for commenting and sharing your family traditions!

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