Northern Cricket Frog: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Frogs and Toads · day 5 of 7

Five facts

1. Only 19 to 38 mm long, this little frog ranks among the three smallest animals with a backbone in North America.
2. Its name comes from its song: a fast clicking, like pebbles knocked together, that sounds a lot like a cricket.
3. It belongs to the tree frog family, yet it does not live up in trees. It prefers the edges of slow, calm water.
4. For its tiny size, this frog is a champion jumper. Its leaps are among the longest of any frog compared with its body length.
5. Cricket frogs can find their way using the Sun as a compass, together with a sense of time. They also use the Moon and stars.

The quiz

1. How long is a northern cricket frog?

• 19 to 38 mm (correct)
• 10 to 15 cm
• 30 to 40 cm
• 5 to 8 mm

At 19 to 38 mm, it ranks among the three smallest vertebrates in North America.

2. Why is it called a cricket frog?

• It eats only crickets
• It lives in cricket burrows
• It is the colour of a cricket
• Its clicking call sounds like a cricket (correct)

Its call sounds like pebbles clicked together, much like a cricket.

3. What is surprising about where this tree frog lives?

• It lives only at the tops of trees
• It does not live in trees (correct)
• It lives in deserts far from water
• It lives in caves

Though it is in the tree frog family, it stays near the water's edge, not in trees.

4. What is the northern cricket frog good at, for its size?

• Digging deep tunnels
• Gliding between trees
• Jumping (correct)
• Running on two legs

Its jumps are among the furthest relative to its body size.

5. What do cricket frogs use like a compass to find their way?

• The smell of mud
• The Sun (correct)
• Mountain shapes
• The sound of rivers

They use the Sun with a sense of time, and also the Moon and stars.

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