Southern Cricket Frogs are very common tiny frogs of shallow water (puddles, ditches, pond margins).

Bladen Co., NC 10/19/2008.

In North Carolina, they occur almost exclusively in the Coastal Plain and are replaced in the Piedmont region by the similar Northern Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans). Southern is slightly smaller, with a more pointed snout, and longer legs with less webbed feet.

Look for the triangle on the top of the head to ID it as a cricket frog.

Johnston Co., NC 4/20/08.

As large as crickets, they range from 0.5 to 1.5 inch long. The calls are slightly reminiscent of a cricket, more like two small rocks being clicked together. They're very loud at close range.

Johnston Co., NC 4/20/08.

Johnston Co., NC 4/20/08.

Dare Co., NC, 3/23/2002.

Southern Cricket Frog are quite variable in coloration.

Dare Co., NC, 3/23/2002.

Alvin Braswell, Curator for Herpetology at the N.C. State Museum of Natural Sciences, thinks this tiny frog may be a recent metamorph of Acris gryllus, Southern Cricket Frog. Compare with Little Grass Frog (Pseudacris ocularis).

Croatan National Forest, Craven Co., NC 8/24/03.