m 



^ 



EAELY VOICES OP SPRING. 19 



what cricketlike but prolonged " Wur-r-r-r-r-r," 

 whicli can be closely imitated by humming and soft- 

 ly whistling the following notes together : 

 In a large congregation of toads the i Q "1~ 

 chorus, by no means shrill or noisy, is 

 remarkable for its effect of harmony. 

 Although the note is sustained, it is 

 broken by exceedingly rapid crepitations which it is 

 impossible for the ear to follow. The " locust," 

 which, years ago, boys used to construct from a 

 soda-bottle neck, a piece of kid glove, a woven bit 

 of horsehair, and a stick, produced a very similar but 

 less musical sound. In singing, the toad swells his 

 throat to a whitish, bubblelike form, which collapses 

 when the sound ceases ; then after two or three 

 movements of the lips, as though to pucker them 

 for another effort, he swells up again, and continues 

 for the space of about seven seconds more. He re- 

 peats this performance an indefinite number of times, 

 and finally, upon a slight and sudden movement of 

 the observer, disappears among the weeds on the 

 border of the pond. So much for his " Liebeslied." 



In some secluded part of the pond the female de- 

 posits the eggs, which are inclosed in a long, thick- 

 walled tube of transparent albumen, in the water. 

 These tubes lie in long spiral strings on the bottom, 

 and the dark-colored young hatch out quite early. 



