Acris gryllus (Source)
Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Cladus: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Classis: Amphibia
Subclassis: Lissamphibia
Ordo: Anura
Familia: Hylidae
Subfamilia: Acrisinae
Genus: Acris
Species: Acris gryllus
Subspecies: A. g. dorsalis – A. g. gryllus
Name
Acris gryllus (LeConte, 1825)
Type locality: "Riceboro, [Liberty County,] Georgia", USA.
Syntypes: Not designated; thought to include USNM 3564 (7 specimens) and 5909 (7 specimens).
Synonyms
Rana gryllus LeConte, 1825
Rana dorsalis Harlan, 1827
Hylodes gryllus — Holbrook, 1838
Acris gryllus — Duméril & Bibron, 1841
Acris acheta Baird, 1854
Acris gryllus gryllus — Cope, 1875
Acris gryllus var. bufonia Boulenger, 1882
Acris gryllus achetae — Garman, 1884
Acris gryllus dorsalis — Netting & Goin, 1945
References
LeConte, 1825, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. New York, 1: 282.
Netting and Goin, 1945, Q. J. Florida Acad. Sci., 8: 305.
Frost, D.R. 2021. Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.1. Electronic Database accessible at https://amphibiansoftheworld.amnh.org/index.php. American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA. DOI: 10.5531/db.vz.0001 Acris gryllus . Accessed on 18 Apr 2008.
2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species IUCN: Acris gryllus (Least Concern) Downloaded on 18 April 2008.
Vernacular names
English: Florida Cricket Frog; Southern Cricket Frog
The southern cricket frog or southeastern cricket frog (Acris gryllus) is a small hylid frog native to the Southeastern United States.[2] It is very similar in appearance and habits to the northern cricket frog, Acris crepitans, and was considered formerly conspecific (Dickerson 1906). The scientific name Acris is from the Greek word for locust, and the species name gryllus is Latin for cricket (Georgia Wildlife).
Description
At 0.75–1.5 inches (16–32 mm) in length, Acris gryllus is even smaller than A. crepitans. Other characters that differentiate the southern species are:
More pointed snout--A. crepitans more blunt.
Hind leg is more than half length of the body when folded—that of A. crepitans is less than one half body length. When rear leg is extended forward, the heel of A. gryllus usually reaches beyond the snout—does not reach snout in A. crepitans.
A. gryllus can jump longer distances than A. crepitans.
A. gryllus has a sharply-defined black stripe on the back of the thigh--A. crepitans has a ragged stripe.
Webbing on rear feet of A. gryllus is sparse, more extensive in A. crepitans.
Range and habitat
The southern cricket frog is characteristic of coastal plain bogs, bottomland swamps, ponds, and ditches. It prefers sunny areas, and is usually not found in woodlands. Subspecies Acris gryllus gryllus is found in the Atlantic Coastal Plain from southeastern Virginia through the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi, west to the Mississippi River. It is found mostly east of the Fall Line, but extends into more upland areas of the Piedmont along river valleys. Subspecies Acris gryllus dorsalis is found throughout the Florida peninsula.
Habits
The southern cricket frog feeds on insects, spiders, and other arthropods. It is active throughout the year in warm weather.
Reproduction
File:Acris gryllus call video.webmPlay media
Male calling and entering amplexus
Breeding is in late spring and summer. The advertisement call of the males is a loud rapid gick, gick, gick. Up to 150 eggs are laid at a time, and more than one mass may be produced in a season (Martof et al. 1980).
Subspecies
Acris gryllus dorsalis (Harlan, 1827) – Florida cricket frog
Acris gryllus gryllus (LeConte, 1825) – Coastal plain cricket frog, southern cricket frog
References
IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (2014). "Acris gryllus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2014: e.T55287A56188704. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-1.RLTS.T55287A56188704.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
Frost, Darrel R. (2014). "Acris gryllus (LeConte, 1825)". Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. American Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
Conant, Roger, et al. (1998). A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-395-90452-8.
Dickerson, Mary C. (1906). The Frog Book. New York: Doubleday, Page, and Company.
Georgia Museum of Natural History. Georgia Wildlife—accessed 15 May 2006
Martof, Bernard S., et al. (1980). Amphibians and Reptiles of the Carolinas and Virginia. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 0-8078-4252-4.
Myers, P., et al. The Animal Diversity Web—accessed 15 May 2006
United States Department of Agriculture, Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS)—accessed 15 May 2006
United States Geological Survey (USGS), Southeast Ecological Science Center—accessed 15 May 2006
"Acris gryllus". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 23 February 2009.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/"
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
