Eastern Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans)

Atlas of Amphibians in Tennessee - Austin Peay State University
Wikipedia
University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
The Frogs & Toads of Georgia - Walter Knapp
AmphibiaWeb - University of California
Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, United States Geological Survey
Tennessee Amphibians & Reptiles - Matthew Niemiller

[UPDATE: The first species I ever put on this blog was the Northern Cricket Frog (Acris crepitans). Well, wouldn't you know it... there's been a taxonomic change. It has recently been split into two species, and the one that ranges across most of Tennessee is the Eastern Cricket Frog, which retains the name Acris crepitans. I'll post about the other species later, so stay tuned! But for now, I'm re-posting the original account because it applies to the new species just as well.]

The Eastern Cricket Frog is widespread across Tennessee, though I have yet to see one in East TN. They're as common as dirt around streams in the Greater Nashville area, especially along the Cumberland River Bicentennial Trail in Cheatham County. They come in two very distinct color forms. One is all brown, and the other has a bright neon green stripe down the back that almost looks like it was made with a highlighter. Their call is really cool; it sounds like someone knocking two small rocks together. (It doesn't sound like a cricket at all, so I'm not sure where the name came from.)

Photos by Matthew Niemiller (top) & James Beck (bottom)