New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-04-19
BATRACHIAN MINSTRELSY.
SPRING SONGS OF FROGS AND ToADs.


NOT so SWEET AS MENDETssoHNs. MAYBE BUT
PROPHETIC AND wELcoME-rHE "PEEPER"
AND SOME OF HIS RIVALS.
r.. r,..er bonnet the deservedy beaten carpet.
,bo hrpht-faced plucky little crocuses ana the
downy pussy willows all right enough IN their
way as harbingers Of spring; but Tor that truly
American shirt Of enterprise wnch seeks 10 ahee'
pate all rivals and for strict attention 10 business
during working hours the peeping frog deserves ,he
palm Not even Barnum's circus effects an earlier
start nor can sticky annels proclaim springs even.
moro conyincingly than the shrill asseveratioh OF
this dimrutve bat-achian or course, you must
get out into the suburbs, out into region "here
there are occasional streams and swamps III o'uer
to receive his message He uses neither teiesiap"'
telephone nor postal service ahu' "nie no' ~ ~"
least ashamed Of himself does not seek notorlety
II must be confessed that the vernal chant OF TINS
interesting creature usually heard as chorus
rather than a solo, Is less variegated thah 1apa"
csc screen and less effervescent than DOCK pee'.
But II is full Of thrilling suggestion; ana II shouu
always be borne In mind that the interchange OF
tuneful observations by peepng frogs, ike the or
cbestrol performance Of the autumnal katydid, Is
designed "for private circulation only" The partci
pants as completely ignore the privileges OF audi-
tors other than themselves as do the characters IN
of Brownings plays
lar twig of the genealogical tree the 'peeper
crovs has no easy task: for there at least $50
living species Of batrachans In the world and loo OF
them belong 10 the genus rama, when IhciuoeS
aquatic frogs only. Not more than thirteen Vi
these however, 20 be found in the United states
Another difficulty which the investigator Is hkey
to encounter arises the fact that there are two
or three other batrachians which exhibit marked
vocal powers in the sprngtime and which may easily
be COMPOUNDED with the one apparently possess'hS
the best title the name pepper Among Wen
Informed people, therefore, difference OF opinion may
be developed. II, without warning, you spring upon
a group of them the question. What do you under-
stand by the name 'peepng frog 2!
THE PEPPERS ARE NOT BULLFROGS.
During any OF the mild days for the last fortnight.
one might have seen scores OF small frogs hoatng IN
Jersey ponds with the tips Of their noses barely
protrudng from the water, and emitting success
sion OF sounds like thoSe OF newly Matched chickens
These lively but shy little chaps appear to be ideh-
teal with those whose legs shipped at this time
OF the year In considerable quantities to MI Black
ford In Fulton Market He calls them peppers
because the men who supply them to him DO so.
These frogs smaller than the big buiitrogs which
reach metropolitan tables later In the season (Ianae
Catesbianae). and different also from the edible
frogs of Europe Q3anae Esculen:ae). They answer
closely to description given by Cope OF the Rama
Virescens which has a yelowish white belly. a
green back spotted with brown and yeHow ana
few family defined bands or stripes Win the
Acris Gryllus 1t Is the first species heard IN the
spring and while It's voice is not loud, the noise
produced by thousands Of them is deafening when
heard close at hand. and Is transmitted many miles.
The peeper then, must be distinguished from the
Rama Palustrs, a species which has a croak ike the
sound OF tearing CLOTH aad which Is not gregarious:
and also from the burog. who has little 10 say at
any time and generally utters his remarks only INT
summer season. and even then confines himself to
,r,'' strpnra
close relationship exists between the pepper and
the historic jumper Of Calaveras County with whose
agile cooperation Jim" Smiley won 50 many
wagers It would be easy to say. one can see
points OF resemblance. however. between the yell
low-grcen vested vocalist Of the Atlantic coast
swamps and the romanically disposed Frog Who
Would a-woo!ng CO.; for the pepper manIfcsts
himself CHIEFLY In the breeding and his diity.
monotonous though 1t seem. is really love song
The same is true of another musical performance
OF early spring. executed by another FAMILY OF pa
,rachians the toads-or Bufonidae. Most toads are
retlcent You take one while he Is hopping
around In the grass on summer evening Feed MN
with frenes until he CLEANS like an sAcandescent
electric light but he will never offer word OF pro-
test or OF thanks The Sphinx Is vvacity and voiu-
billy lmpersonated compared with him. But IN the
yernal season while his mate Is laying ner eggs, ne
and a crowd OF other fellows get together In a re-
tired spot and sing by the hour. The sound Is
about what would result II you could whistle
continuous note OF medium pitch and at the same
time say "Ur-rr-r-r-r" 1t is a weird. almost dole
ful chorus and yet most people welcome II as an IN
dlcatlon that mild and settled weather has arrived
Not infrequently this familiar noise IS imputed to
peepng frogs But tho authors OF It are not frogs.
and they don't peep Otherwise the theory Is free
from objection.
THE TREE FROG FAMILY.
Passing reference has just been made to the Acris
Gryus who sometimes adds ''Crepitans' 10 his IL
tie and who belongs to the family OF Hylidae 1t
may not be late TO observe that batrachian Is
an anphiban who gets rid OF his tail as he energies
from the youthful to the adult stage of existence.
A crocodile for instance Is an amphbian but he
sticks to his tail through thick and thin lie is not.
therefore. batrachian The Hyl!dae Ike the
aquatic frogs and the ground, haunting toads. are
salient batrachians: that is. they are a good doal
given to Jumping. The salamander Is batrachlan,
but ne does not jump. Hence ~ Is not classified
from rom one OF its genera Hyaj. e,lnces fondness
for orchard or forest environment and even ior
themselves. The Acrls Grylus Crepltans, though
not fun boOded Hyla. is much IKE o1. He is
states from New-York southward and thence west,
WARD and Wsn as viii is no pond for
refuge. He ems such sound as one gets on rap
pnf two s IS also casd the cricket
frog Sometimes you can persuade him 10 produce
h h Aer nor eenas S char aeS yIae called
Charophli can be mistaken for pepper by prac'
Perhaps tho best known species among the iIylae
Il our common tree frog OF the Northern and East
ern states He is Incorrectly called the tree toad
The name under which he votes Is Hyia Nersc1or
and he Is nearly the same creature as the Hyla
Arborea OF Europe. OF the former. Cope says: Its
voice Is q loud coarse. resonant trill uttered with
uniform pitch and continued for two or three sec
onds. II is heard about bodies of water In the
spring. Later in the season 1t proceeds from fences
hedgerows and orchards. well from the forest
often at no great elevation from the ground They
are especially noisy toward evening after "A rain.
1t readily takes the color OF the object which IL
rests thus concealng itself successfully Its colors
vary from deep brown to gray and nearly white
bright green The change OF color IL not rapidly
accomplished. The favorte color Is gray, which is
Identical with that Of the lichens OF the trees which
| II nhabits"
II you look in Webster's Dictionary under Piping"
| will nj an nj n ''pipinP