Skip to main content

Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests

Get our e-news! Sign up

small nav

  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Staff
    • Board of Trustees
    • Our History
    • Employment
    • Conservation Center
    • FAQs
    • Partners
    • Business Members
    • Annual Reports
    • Bylaws
    • Policies
  • log in
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

Main menu

  • What we do
    • Land Conservation
    • Education & Events
    • Advocacy
    • Forestry & Recreation
    • News & Features
    • Forest Notes & More Publications
  • Current Projects
    • Mahoosuc Highlands, Shelburne
    • Forest Society North at The Rocks Campaign
    • Build Creek Farm Restrooms, Portsmouth
    • Mount Major Stewardship Fund
    • Recent Accomplishments
  • Visit & Explore
    • The Rocks
    • Conservation Center
    • Mount Major
    • Creek Farm
    • Forest Reservation Guide
    • Visitor Use Guidelines
  • Get Involved
    • Upcoming Events
    • Membership/Renewal
    • Support Our Work
    • Volunteer
    • Subscribe to E-news
    • Annual Meeting 2023
  • Search

Search form

Donate
Menu

News

  • Forestry Friday: The Rare Milkweed Garden at the Gardner Forest

    Sophie Oehler
    September 15, 2023

    In this Forestry Friday, the forestry team takes a trip to the Gardener Forest in Hollis to check in on a population of a rare species of milkweed. (Photo: Sophie Oehler)

  • Something Wild: Why the treeline of Mt. Washington is not a line

    Dave Anderson, Chris Martin, Jessica Hunt
    August 24, 2023

    In this second episode of our series, Dave Anderson of the Forest Society and Chris Martin of NH Audubon are exploring the different forest zones on the flanks of the mountain, below the treeline.

  • Something Wild: Atop Mt. Washington

    Dave Anderson, Chris Martin, Jessica Hunt
    August 3, 2023

    The Something Wild team is above treeline on Mount Washington, exploring the ecological zones of New England’s highest peak. 

    While many visitors focus on summiting, Chris Martin of NH Audubon and Dave Anderson of the Forest Society are examining how both flora and fauna vary as the ...

If It Sounds Like a Duck It Might Be a Frog

Something Wild
Chris Martin
April 3, 2015
Wildlife
The Wood frog chorus sounds like quacking ducks.

If you're out for a walk this month, and you hear something that sounds like ducks quacking, don't expect to see ducks. The call of a male wood frog fools a lot of people. The all-male frog chorus is revving up now, and wood frog males are the first to announce their availability to females.

Wood frogs spend all but a few weeks in woodland habitat while the other true frogs hang out in water. On a rainy spring night, some signal known only to wood frogs triggers their nearly simultaneous mass migration from woodlands to vernal pools. When you hear wood frogs quacking, you know there's a vernal pool nearby, formed by snow melt and spring rains. The males advertise, females respond, eggs are laid and fertilized, and the adults return to the safety of the woods. Their camouflage coloring blends well with leaf litter on the forest floor, so a quick return to safe habitat favors their survival.

As for why they're the first voice in spring's frog chorus: Wood frogs tolerate extreme cold. They're the only North American amphibian found north of the Arctic Circle. They also breed in vernal pools that usually dry up in summer, so an early start increases tadpole survival chances. When winter comes, bull frogs and other pond frogs submerge to spend the winter in the murk and mud well below the ice. Not so wood frogs. Able to tolerate a deep freeze, they winter among the leaves and debris of the woodland floor, frozen quite solid.

Listen to the feature here at NHPR

Download the Forest Society Mobile App, powered by OuterSpatial

Available on the App Store
Get it on Google Play

Footer menu

  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests54 Portsmouth St.Concord, NH 03301
Phone: 603.224.9945Fax: 603.228.0423info@forestsociety.org
Land Trust Alliance accreditation logo