The Cajun Chorus Frog (Pseudacris fouquettei) is a small chorus frog found in the forests and grasslands from the approximately Mississippi River west to east-central Texas then north from the gulf coast to Arkansas and Oklahoma.
Historically this frog has been known as the Western Chorus Frog (Pseudacris triseriata - a reference to the three stripes usually seen on the body) or the Upland Chorus Frog (Pseudacris feriarum). Recent molecular evidence suggests that the population west of the Mississippi in OK, AR, LA, and east TX represents a unique species, P. fouquettei.
Although many Cajun Chorus Frogs have three stripes, some individuals can have only faint indications of those stripes. Here's one from Colorado County, Texas with only faint stripes.
and an individual from Cherokee County, Texas with fairly muted pattern.
Like many of the Chorus Frogs, Cajun Chorus Frogs call from flooded grassy areas or the edge of grassy ponds. They often call from deep within clumps of grass and can be difficult to find while calling. One thing that can give them away is the movement and reflection off their vocal sac as they make their call.
Like many of the chorus frog species, the call of the Cajun Chorus frog is an ascending trill that sounds a bit like someone running their fingernail along the teeth of a plastic comb. Here is a couple of males from a Arkansas on a cool spring night.
As the temperature increases, the rate of their call speeds up. Here is a small group from Cherokee County, Texas on a somewhat warmer night.
Here is a Cajun Chorus Frog calling from a roadside ditch in Colorado County, Texas on a warm January night -
© Chris Harrison 2015
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