I am fascinated with the, literally, hundreds of tiny little frogs that live in the pine straw in my garden beds–and who bail to the grass when heavy rains make the pine straw too wet for them (?).
After researching frogs in South Carolina, I think they are a local form of the Southern Cricket Frog. The Northern Cricket Frog may be more prevalent in the western part of the state.
I took this pictures on the driveway after heavy rains.
These tiny frogs range from 1/2 inch to just under an inch. They derive from the tree frog family, but do NOT have tree-frog sticky foot pads. But they can jump, apparently, astonishing distances.
Mostly, I see them RUNNING and jumping.
Here’s a video I took just a big ago–before we get more rain today.
These little creatures eat insects, of course. They can, apparently camouflage themselves, so I see a range of tan/grey (the clay), to brown (the pine straw) to a deep black (the compost dirt). They can also “play dead” when you pick them up. And, they will pee on your hand too.
Here’s more info if you feel so inclined.
Louisa Enright's Blog 