Two of the barrels under one corner of the raft were leaking. We pulled it out of the pond with a tractor, jacked up the corner, unbolted the barrels, and paused, because we heard something.
“Wait a minute. Do you hear that? It sounds like frogs.”
I kicked a barrel loose and two Gray Tree Frogs fell on the ground. They must have climbed up onto the barrels underneath the raft.
So now I’m thinking the frog eggs in the last post belong to the Gray Tree Frog.
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Posted by Curiousfarmer
I love toads and frogs. The first week of May always finds me searching for eggs and tadpoles.
Look at the mating toads surrounded by eggs. The male is smaller than the female. Sometimes they have a threesome.
Frogs seem more discrete in their mating behavior. I have often heard their mating call; but have never seen them coupled.
Toad eggs are in long strings. Frog eggs are in clumps, like grapes. Look at the frog eggs below. Don’t frogs just seem more organized? Is nature organized?
I don’t know which species of frog I should attribute these eggs. They may be the eggs of the Spring Peeper. They may also be the eggs of the Bullfrog.
Bullfrog tadpoles are unique. Instead of working to get out of the water fast, like toads, bullfrog tadpoles spend the first year of their life chillin’ in the water, and change into frogs their second summer.
Below is a bullfrog tadpole I caught along the water’s edge. Maybe I will post some more photos throughout the summer as their legs lengthen and their tail shortens. Would you like that?
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Posted by Curiousfarmer
Killdeer nest. Can you see the nest in the center of the photo below? I took this picture at eye level, standing a few feet away.
I found the nest because the mother moved off of it as I walked by her. I stuck a stick in the ground to help me find it again. Even with the stick, it takes me awhile to find the nest. The eggs almost seem invisible.
Killdeer parents are tenacious and almost annoying in defense of their young. They employ a broken-wing strategy in combination with a distress call to lure predators away from the nest or their precocial chicks. I know this because they do this to me all the time, thinking I’m a predator.
I got to thinking about camouflage. Killdeer begin life as wallflowers; but need to step out of that role to raise a family.
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Posted by Curiousfarmer
