Ok, now it’s springtime!
These are the first Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris triseriata) that I’ve heard calling this year. The location is a small depression within one of our pastures. The air temperature was 61 degrees Fahrenheit when I heard them. Most of the snow and ice has finally melted, although a few patches remain.
Regular readers may remember that it was almost a year ago that we conducted a nighttime frog survey, right before Indiana entered our coronavirus lockdown.
For a neat audio/visual representation of the different frogs and their calling seasons, click here.
Our own Adam Calhoun recently captured a flock of migrating Sandhill Cranes practicing their dance moves in our corn fields. Apparently this dance involves flinging chunks of manure up in the air. Hey… who am I to judge their culture? It seems to work for them.
You’ll notice that the birds are already somewhat two-toned. Only one of the colors is their actual plumage; the other is decoration. Here’s a video from a year ago where we caught them putting on such body paint. Between camouflage and dancing, Sandhill Cranes are obviously great patrons of the arts!
Adam, you have a wealth of attachments. It’s so fun to remenisce. Calhoun deserves kudos. I keep thinking how important this is to our ecological awareness and thinking integrally.
I love hearing the songs of frogs and seeing the Sandhills cranes. The photos by Adam Calhoun are terrific!! Yeah, spring is almost here!!
Thanks for posting, Adam. What a great shot of the cranes! We’ve been hearing (and sometimes seeing) large migrating groups headed your way lately.