Species
Little grass frog
Pseudacris ocularis
North America's smallest frog, barely a centimetre long, calling with insect-like chirps.
Photo Alex Stach (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab)
At a glance
- Size
- About 1 to 1.8 cm long
- Habitat
- Grassy wetlands, cypress ponds and wet pine flatwoods
- Diet
- Tiny insects
- In Georgia
- The Coastal Plain
- Voice
- A faint, high, insect-like "set-see"
- Rabies vector
- No
Identification
- Key marks
- Tiny; tan, brown or reddish with a dark stripe through the eye and down the side
- Told apart from
- Cricket frogs, which are warty and larger
- Where to look
- Among grasses in wet flatwoods; almost impossible to spot
Behaviour
Little grass frogs call almost all year in the south, climbing grass stems in shallow water. Their call is easily mistaken for an insect's.
Why they matter
They are the smallest frogs in North America and part of the great diversity of southern wetlands.
Reproduction and lifecycle
Eggs — Laid singly on the bottom of shallow water
Hatching — In a few days
Tadpoles — Change into frogs in 6 to 10 weeks
Maturity — Within a year
Lifespan — About a year
Calling — Almost all year
Living around people
- It is harmless and rarely seen.
Misconceptions
- It is a baby frog. It is fully grown.
Related species
Seasonal activity
When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breeding | Jan: no | Feb: no | Mar: no | Apr: no | May: no | Jun: no | Jul: no | Aug: no | Sep: no | Oct: no | Nov: no | Dec: no |
| Active nests | Jan: no | Feb: no | Mar: no | Apr: no | May: no | Jun: no | Jul: no | Aug: no | Sep: no | Oct: no | Nov: no | Dec: no |
| Notes | Calling on mild nights | Calling | Breeding | Breeding | Breeding | Breeding | Breeding | Breeding | Breeding | Calling | Calling on mild nights | Calling on mild nights |
Where it lives
Recorded in 5 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.
United States
If you found one
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