Jeepers, creepers, we've got those peepers

[marty]

I stepped outside the house last night and lo and behold, I heard choruses of peeper frogs in the adjacent wetlands. This is certainly the earliest we have heard this sign of spring in the 14 years we've been at our home.

We have some other spring indicators, such as early ice-out, tulips and daffodils ahead of schedule and skunk (swamp) cabbage nearly in full bloom. This is a REALLY early spring down in northeastern Massachusetts!

Marty

 

[Chip]

My wife heard them 2 nights ago. This is one of her "favorite things", she's really funny about it, like a kid getting an extra Christmas.

 

[MichaelJ]

Yup I heard them the other night, too.

As well as the @#$%! songbird (dunno what kind) outside my bedroom window around 4am. Damned thing is back again for another summer of waking me up ... aaauuuggghhhh!!!!

 

[arghman]

!

too early.

 

[Mike P.]

Heard them along the airline trail last Thursday 03/23.

 

[Rick]

I first heard them about 2 weeks ago when we had that 70 degree day, then they were silent until last night. Boy did they send up a chorus!!! brings back memories of waiting for ice-out to start fishing.

 

[dug]

Funny story about peepers. My brother went to Lawrence Academy in Groton, MA. His dorm room was on the corner of a building, one window faced the road and the other faced the woods.

First day back to school, his roomate (from Roxbury) was sleeping nderneath the window by the woods. By brother (a New Hampshire boy) was sleeping by the road. After an hour or so of restless sleeping, by brother yells out "I can't sleep with all that GD traffic driving by!". His roomate replies "The traffic is nothing...it's those crickets (sic) that are driving me crazy." Being accustomed to the traffic growing up in a populated area, he never even heard it. My family grew up with a pond in our back yard, so the peepers never bothered us.

Ahhh, Americana.

 

[marty]

My wife and I took the dog out tonight around dusk to do her business and heard a soothing sound that we haven't heard in about 10 months or so. The peeper frogs were chorusing loudly in the wetlands behind our house! Today's warm temps brought them out in force.

Spring has sprung in Boxford, MA

Marty

 

[una_dogger]

Just heard them tonight.

 

[Paradox]

Mine are still frozen solid, under two feet of ice.

 

[1ADAM12]

I heard them last night too after we had a freak thunderstorm with hail

 

[Snowflea]

When I lived in Vermont, for 3 or 4 years in a row the peepers back behind the house would begin singing exactly on April 15.

Here in southern CA, I heard them on January 29!!

 

[audrey]

Is there only one species of peeper? The ones we heard at the Middlesex Fells last weekend sounded more like ducks than what I remember. Genie was going nuts splashing around looking for the source.

 

[J&J]

Audrey,

Were you hearing wood frogs perhaps? They sound like quacking ducks.

 

[skibones]

The only thing that I hear is ice falling off the roof. I don't think we'll hear peepers in Waterville for awhile.
Skibones

 

[Kevin Judy and Emma]

Spring

Have heard wood frogs, but no peepers yet. We had ice out last Friday, but we are always early because the pond is shallow and warms quickly, (of course, it freezes early, too.) The eagles are still here and haven't migrated north yet, nor have the rafts of Ring Necks, Mergansers and Buffleheads. No Coots this year, at least not yet, and no Loons.

KDT

 

[sardog1]

The folks at the USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center have published an excellent "Checklist of Amphibian Species and Identification Guide".

 

[weatherman]

First peepers in Shrewsbury, MA:
2005 4/1 (snow total 100.9")
2006 3/31 (snow total 58.4")
2007 3/27 (snow total 38.3"- boo)
2008 4/1 (snow total 69.2" so far)

Remarkably consistent!
Weatherman

 

[Jazzbo]

Thank you Weatherman!

Thank you Weatherman! If what you write is based on actual data you took and you actually live close enough to good peeper habitat and are in position to take data every year you could contribute to truly objective analysys of onset of spring as impacted by global warming. Myself I don't live anywhere near peeper habitat. I've been thinking here must be some indicator that's easily measured that might furnish objective evidence of impacts of global warming. This might be a good one.

The climate scienetist at UNH who writes about climate change in New England looks for farmer's diaries, maple syrup producers, etc for historical information of weather changes. I think sap running is probably heavily influenced by snow fall and snow fall timing so is apt to be chaotic, but peepers! Good stuff man! Continue keeping those records. 20 years of that would be really interesting to read. Since regular folks move around a lot, Audobon sanctuaries frequently associated with wetlands habitats would be in good position to maintain records like these.

 

[LittleBear]

The snow is gone from the field out back!

Spring is here in Rye, NH! An American Woodcock has begun his mating display behind our house - a true sign of spring! I heard his "peeent" call following by his wing whir and flight song two days ago right around dusk.