Qo Frogs of the Okefinokee Swamp 



baby. To the writer at first they sounded Hke some Rana in distress, much 

 as they call when a snake or turtle have them. At a distance at other times 

 they sounded like young herons in a heronry. They may make as much noise 

 as a steam calliope but it hardly sounds hke it. Mr. F. Harper characterizes 

 the call as "naarh, naarh — complaining, nasal, not shrill or high pitched." 



When we first approached the males called on all sides in full daylight, 

 almost at our very feet. The throat by day is a beautiful glistening white 

 when the male is croaking. The throat when inflated may be a ball from i- 

 I 1/2 inches in diameter. The male before he croaks lays on the water's 

 surface with hind legs partially submerged. When he croaks he tips the hind 

 end of the body and hind legs beneath the water and the head is reared to a 

 45°-75° angle with the water's surface. When at the height of the performance 

 or slightly before he closes his eyes. Then the throat deflates and body 

 inflates. It croaks about once in every two seconds. 



Some occasionally question whether female frogs croak or assert they do 

 not. Often a female when picked up will give a croak or squawk not like the 

 breeding call of the male. Sometimes when two or more males are struggling 

 for a female she will squawk, possibly because it may be almost too much for 

 her to bear. Normally the male and female of a mated pair seldom croak. 

 It is usually the males which are searching a mate or annoying the already 

 mated pairs. 



MATING 



Male {From life, Aug. 18, 1922). Stripe from eye back to vent lemon 

 yellow or greenish yellow. Snout mummy brown or prout's brown. Other 

 light colors of the back are same as stripe from eye to vent, i. e., lemon yellow 

 or greenish yellow, so also on the sides. Snout sometimes blackish brown (i) 

 or bone brown. This is also the remaining color of the back. Sometimes the 

 back color is virtually black. Limbs on dorsum much the same color or 

 slightly washed out more greenish yellow than back light colors. Under parts 

 of hind limbs, lower belly light grayish vinaceous. Rest of under parts white 

 especially the white glistening throat when croaking is done. First three 

 fingers with black excrescences. Space of hind foot dark-edged and tip of ist 

 toe. Web much darker than grayish vinaceous web of female. Male have 

 wider and larger hind feet. Iris light greenish yellow with black on outer 

 rim. Pupil vertical. 



Female {Frofu life, Aug. 18, 1922). Sometimes uniform warm sepia or bone 

 brown above. Throat and breast white. Underside of forelimbs and hind 

 hmbs and lower belly light grayish vinaceous. Sometimes the stripe on fe- 

 males may be sulphur yellow instead of the intense greenish yellow of male. 



Structural differences. The first character recorded is "Males with a sub- 

 gular vocal sac (Holbrook 1842, p. 109). Dumeril and Bibron (1841, Vol. 

 VIII, p. 472) write that "The males under the throat have an internal vocal 

 vesicle which communicates with the mouth by two large longitudinal slits, 

 placed one to the right and one to the left of the tongue." Or "Un sac vocal 

 sous-gulaire, chesles males." (Same p. 471). 



