Image by: Mary Anne Dingus, courtesy Sibley Nature Center

Spadefoot Desert Chorale

From: Marfa Public Radio
Series: Nature Notes
Length: 04:30

Summer storms send many desert frogs and toads into a raucous reproductive frenzy. What role do their choruses play in their hasty courtship? Read the full description.

Piece Audio

Playing: Spadefoot Desert Chorale
From: Marfa Public Radio

Spadefoot-photo-by-dingus-s_small The concert starts with a mighty summer storm. Thunder stirs the singers from their subterranean slumber. They convene at an impromptu stage—maybe a rain-filled arroyo, maybe a waterlogged ditch. And just as the curtain of evening falls, the chorus begins. Who are these vocalists? And what’s the occasion for their performance?

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Piece Description

The concert starts with a mighty summer storm. Thunder stirs the singers from their subterranean slumber. They convene at an impromptu stage—maybe a rain-filled arroyo, maybe a waterlogged ditch. And just as the curtain of evening falls, the chorus begins. Who are these vocalists? And what’s the occasion for their performance?

Musical Works

Title	Artist	Album	Label	Year	Length
Big Sky (Reprise)	Dan Gibson, Bill Brennan, Rob Piltch	Country Retreat.	Solitudes	2000	00:00
The Frogs and Toads of North America: A Comprehensive Guide to Their Identification,Behavior, and Calls	Lang Elliott, Carl Gerhardt, and Carlos Davidson	The Frogs and Toads of North America: A Comprehensive Guide to Their Identification,Behavior, and Calls.	Mariner Books	2009	00:00

Additional Credits

Host Dallas Baxter. Written by Megan Wilde. Frog sounds courtesy of Lang Elliott, Carlos Davidson and Carl Gerhardt, from their CD and book, The Frogs and Toads of North America.