Barking TreefrogHyla gratiosa

The Barking Treefrog (Hyla gratiosa) is one of the largest native treefrogs to the United States.  They are found in the Southeastern US from the North Carolina and along the southeastern US west to the Mississippi River.
They are typically a mixture of greens and browns with conspicuous large spots.

The Barking Treefrog gets its common name from its call which was originally compared (I guess) to the bark of a dog?  However, it is better described and a hollow "tonk" or "ponk" sound.   From a distance, a large distant chorus sounds a bit like the noise made by swinging a hollow plastic hose above their head.

Here is a chorus of Barking Treefrogs calling from a small pond near Tallahassee, Florida in May 2018.  The clicking sound heard with them is the Southern Cricket Frog (Acris gryllus).

Here's a short video clip of one calling at the same location.  At the end of the clip I have slowed it down to 10% speed so you can see how much water is displaced by the explosive nature of the call.  You can also see it in the vibrations around the frog in the photo above.

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© Chris Harrison 2018