Is it a bird? A bug? Nope, just a spring peeper
The chorus of chirps and peeps fill the evenings each year — and it's a sure sign of spring.
But what is making the noise? It's a type of frog called a spring peeper.
Widely distributed in eastern North America, including New Brunswick, the spring peeper is only about three to four centimetres long, with females being a bit bigger than males, explained John Klymko, a zoologist with the Atlantic Canada Conservation Data Centre in Sackville.
"They're far more conspicuous with their vocalizations than they are visually," he said. "They're a hard species to find. They live in wooded areas, thickets, that sort of thing, around water bodies."
At night, Klymko said they can be spotted around water bodies. He said their peeps will quiet down when you approach, but you can see them by their shining eyes. And on warm, wet nights, they might be found crossing roadways.
It's much easier, though, to listen for their vocalizations to be aware of their presence, said Klymko.
He said the frogs have a vocal pouch, which looks like a balloon, that expands under their chin and amplifies the noise that's produced by pushing air through slits in their mouth.
They make two types of sounds. The primary one, said Klymko, is the classic peep noise that males use to draw females in with the hope of mating. Another sound is a short trill that happens when two males interact with each other.
"It's just males making the sound," he said.
"Some males don't vocalize. They'll hang out near males that are vocalizing and try to intercept females that are coming in, drawn to those calls.
"When you think about the abundance of these frogs at a water body, realize that, you know, you're hearing less than half of the frogs out there."
For those interested in hearing the springtime peeps, it's best to listen now before the frogs disperse in early June, said Klymko.
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