08/7/12

A Green Frog (at Frogs Are Green)

At Frogs Are Green, we’ve posted about tomato red frogs, blue frogs, and yellow-and-black spotted frogs, but I don’t think we’ve ever written about the Green Frog (Rana clamitans).

Green frog camouflaged in grass. Photo by Mary Jo Rhodes

Recently I visited my sister, who lives in the woods in Connecticut. On our first night, there was heavy downpour. When I woke the next morning, I heard what sounded like someone plucking a loose banjo string. Coming from the city, I was thrilled: it was my welcome call from a Green Frog outside! My sister has built a couple of frog/koi ponds on her property. Although fish and frogs aren’t supposed to co-exist (fish eat the frogs’ eggs), somehow it has worked out.

Frog pond in CT

The Green Frog is mainly aquatic, but they often rest by the side of the pond, leaping in when danger approaches. Males have a tympanum (external hearing structure) twice the diameter of the eye and a bright yellow throat.

Green Frog. Notice the large eardrum behind his eye. Photo by Mary Jo Rhodes.

Green frog in reeds. Photo by Mary Jo Rhodes

You might see Green Frogs in ponds, lakes, and swamps—they are one of the most common frogs in the eastern U.S.

Just in case you’re out in the country this summer, here is what it sounds like:

01/5/12

Announcing the Winners of the 2011 Frogs Are Green Photography Contest

We are excited to announce the winners of the second annual 2011 FROGS ARE GREEN photo contest. We were thrilled to receive such fabulous entries, and it was difficult to pick winners. We hope you will continue your adventures as amphibian photographers and enter next year’s photo contest!

We accepted photos in two categories: Frogs in the Wild and Backyard Frogs.

FROGS IN THE WILD

Winner

Photograph by Sara Viernum, Barking Treefrog holding onto to a reed in a vernal pond in the Talladega National Forest in Northeastern, Alabama.

Photograph by Sara Viernum, Barking Treefrog holding onto to a reed in a vernal pond in the Talladega National Forest in Northeastern, Alabama.

Honorable mentions:
"Froggy Condo" taken at Jenna Wild Life Preserve Swamps in Dixi County, Florida, by Tina Calderin.

"Froggy Condo" taken at Jenna Wild Life Preserve Swamps in Dixi County, Florida, by Tina Calderin

Tree frog in Lily, photographed by Brian Blom, Deerwood, MN.

Tree frog in Lily, photographed by Brian Blom, Deerwood, MN.

BACKYARD FROGS
Winner:
Photograph by Krista Herbstrith who says, "I was showing my son the frog on the flowers from the garden, when the frog leaped and landed on my son's face," Northfield, MN.

Photograph by Krista Herbstrith who says, "I was showing my son the frog on the flowers from the garden, when the frog leaped and landed on my son's face," Northfield, MN.

Honorable mention:
Photograph by Sara Viernum - Barking Treefrog is hunting for insects under the front porch light on a house in Oxford, Alabama.

Photograph by Sara Viernum - Barking Treefrog is hunting for insects under the front porch light on a house in Oxford, Alabama.

SPECIAL MENTION
This photo by Jan Knizek wasn’t easily categorized, but we wanted to give it  special mention because it poignantly tells the story of  how European Green Toads and other amphibians are losing their habitats through over development. This is one of a very few breeding sites of the toads in Prague, Czech Republic, and is currently endangered by a development project.
Photograph by Jan Knizak, Photo taken at the last known breeding site in Prague, Czech Republic, currently endangered by a development project.

Photograph taken by Jan Knizek taken at one of a very few breeding sites in Prague, Czech Republic, currently endangered by a development project.

05/22/11

Frog Paparazzi – Photographing Amphibians this Summer

This summer we’d like to encourage you to get out and photograph amphibians while on vacation or near home, even in your own backyard! The beauty of photographing frogs and other amphibians is that you don’t have to go on a safari or travel to someplace exotic to photograph them.

Here are a few tips from the book Frogs: A Chorus of Colors by John and Deborah Behler, which has a chapter on photographing these well-camouflaged creatures:

• Try to learn about the animal first. What is its habitat? When are they active?
• Walk slowly and stop frequently [it helps to have someone with you who is less than 3 feet tall and has sharp eyes]. Frogs and toads blend in so well that they are hard to find. Be alert for subtle movements.
• In summer, you might find the sit-and-wait frog predators hanging out on the edges of ponds and lakes.
• Be aware of the position of the sun. Avoid taking pictures at midday on bright sunny days. In the morning, face east and it will keep sunlight from coming into your lens and washing out your photos.
• Don’t necessarily put the subject in the middle of the photo. Keep the whole animal in the photo, but compose the picture so the background tells a story.
• Bracket your photos, i.e., take the same shot with different settings. Also, try taking a flash photo. Without a flash, animals in photos may look lifeless and poorly lighted.
• Try to be on the same level as your subject.
• State parks, bird sanctuaries, and wildlife refuges are good places to find amphibians.

You don’t need a fancy camera to get interesting shots. I took this photo of a  spring peeper in low light with a Kodak EasyShare camera on the Flower Setting (might be called “close up” on your camera). When we were traveling in Virginia, my husband stopped the car so that we could listen to the peepers. Although peepers are often heard with their distinct high-pitched “peeps,” they are seldom seen. My son spotted the peeper below, but it took my husband and I about five minutes before we were able to see the inch-long and extremely well-camouflaged frog. Once we spotted it, the frog sat stock still for a few minutes to allow all three of us to behave like amphibian paparazzi (we took a dozen pictures before the frog had had enough and hopped off).

I think this is one of the reasons I enjoy photographing frogs: they have a survival behavior that causes them to freeze when they sense danger, in order to avoid detection from predators (unlike mammals like rabbits, deer etc, which will hop or run off long before you’ve even focused) so that it’s possible to get some great pictures of them.

spring peeper, photo by Mary Jo Rhodes

For inspiration, we recommend taking a look at the book Frog: A Photographic Portrait, a gorgeous collection of photographs by wildlife photographer Thomas Marent, who traveled to rainforests all over the world to photograph unusual amphibians. As he says, “The variety of colors, shapes, and sounds of frogs is truly spectacular, and a wildlife photographer’s dream….!”

Don’t forget to submit your best amphibian photograph to our 3rd Annual Photo Contest!

FROG: A PHOTOGRAPHIC PORTRAIT by Thomas Marent

12/15/10

Announcing the Winners of the 2010 Frogs Are Green Photo Contest

First off, we would like to thank all the photographers who entered the 2010 FROGS ARE GREEN photo contest. We were thrilled to receive your entries, and it was difficult to pick a winner. We hope you will continue your adventures as amphibian photographers and enter next year’s photo contest!

This year we accepted photos in two categories: frogs in the wild and backyard frogs.

FROGS IN THE WILD
WINNER: Adam Paine

Mourning Frogs in South Carolina by Adam Paine

Photo of Mourning Frogs in South Carolina by Adam Paine

We chose this photo because it is unusual and compelling.

Adam writes of the photo, “These frogs were found along the Pocotaligo River in South Carolina. It seems as if the mother frog had recently passed away from unknown causes. I had never seen this deep of an emotion showed in the Reptilian Kingdom before.”

HONORABLE MENTION: Christine Murphy

Camouflaged Toad in Josephine County, Oregon.

Photo of Camouflaged Toad in Josephine County, Oregon by Christine Murphy

We liked this well-composed photo of a handsome toad camouflaged on tree bark.

BACKYARD FROGS

WINNER: Christine Murphy

Winner of the Frogs Are Green 2010 Backyard Frogs Photo Contest

Photo by Christine Murphy in Josephine County, Oregon.

We chose this photo of a frog on a fence because of its strong composition.

HONORABLE MENTION: Theresa Walters

Singing Toad photo by Theresa Walters, Tionesta, PA. USA

Singing Toad photo by Theresa Walters, Tionesta, PA. USA - Honorable Mention

We liked this photo of a male toad serenading a female toad in a backyard pond.

Theresa writes, “I found this singing toad in my backyard pond, in Tionesta, PA, standing on an artificial water lily. He was so involved in “singing” for a female, he didn’t even know I was there!”

PRIZES:
The winners will receive a Frogs Are Green t-shirt or poster of his/her choice or we can design a special t-shirt and/or poster with your winning photo. Honorable mention photographers will receive our small Red-Eyed Tree Frog poster.

07/5/10

FROGS ARE GREEN 2010 Photo Contest!

We’re excited to announce the 2nd Annual FROGS ARE GREEN Photo contest!

Here are the rules:

This year we will be accepting submissions in two categories: Frogs in the Wild and Backyard Frogs. Backyard Frog photos would include such photos as a frog perched on your picnic table or other unusual place. Last year, for example, we received a photo of a frog sitting on a pool hose. Frogs in the Wild photos, on the other hand, should feature frogs, toads, or other amphibians in their natural habitat: frog ponds, marshes, in the woods, and so on.

PLEASE—no photo manipulation and no photos of pet frogs. Please do not move the frog to get a better photo. Photos of amphibians of all kinds, including salamanders, will be accepted. E-mail all photos to us at Frogs Are Green. All photos should be in jpeg format and no larger than 3 MB. Please name your photo a short but distinctive name, (with no spaces, such as, “susan-frog-NJ.jpg”) and include a caption detailing your name, email and the location of the photo. All entries must be received by September 15, 2010. Winners will be announced October 4, 2010.

PRIZES

Winner:

The winner will receive a Frogs Are Green t-shirt or poster of his/her choice or we can design a special t-shirt and/or poster with your winning photo. The photo will be featured in a separate post and the photo will also appear on the front page of the blog all year.

Honorable mentions:

Honorable mention photos will appear in a gallery on our blog and the photographers will receive our small Red-Eyed Tree Frog poster.

SOME TIPS FOR PHOTOGRAPHING AMPHIBIANS

For those of you who have never photographed an amphibian, here are some tips from the book Frogs: A Chorus of Colors by John and Deborah Behler, which has a chapter on photographing these elusive and well-camouflaged creatures:

• Try to learn about the animal first. What is its habitat? When are they active?
• Walk slowly and stop frequently (it helps to have someone with you who is less than 3 feet tall and has sharp eyes). Frogs and toads blend in so well that they are hard to find. Be alert for subtle movements.
• In summer, you might find the sit-and-wait frog predators hanging out on the edges of ponds and lakes.
• Be aware of the position of the sun. Avoid taking pictures at midday on bright sunny days. In the morning, face east and it will keep sunlight from coming into your lens and washing out your photos.
• Don’t necessarily put the subject in the middle of the photo. Keep the whole animal in the photo, but compose the picture so the background tells a story.
• Bracket your photos, i.e., take the same shot with different settings. Also, try taking a flash photo. Without a flash, animals in photos may look lifeless and poorly lighted.
• Try to be on the same level as your subject.
• State parks, bird sanctuaries, and wildlife refuges are good places to find amphibians.

You don’t need fancy equipment. I took this photo of a bullfrog in low light with a Kodak EasyShare camera on the Flower Setting (close up).

Bullfrog, photo by Mary Jo Rhodes

On your travels this summer, keep your eye peeled for our froggy friends and send in your photos!

06/14/10

Northern Leopard Frog: Hidden in the Grass

Over Memorial Day, my family and I explored Frotenac Provincial Park in southeastern Ontario, Canada. We called this park Frog Heaven because it was full of swamps, marshes, and  frogs ponds.

I saw a few bullfrogs, but my son spotted what I’m pretty sure is a Northern Leopard Frog (any herpetologists out there who would like to confirm this for me?) Below are a few photos: the leopard frog perfectly camouflaged and the same frog close up. The frog did not jump away when it sensed us nearby, but sat frozen in place—the better to hide from a predator. But that gave us the opportunity to take lots of pictures of it.

Frotenac Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Photo by Mary Jo Rhodes

Northern Leopard Frog, camouflaged. Photo by Mary Jo Rhodes

Northern Leopard Frog close up. Photo by Mary Jo Rhodes

Leopard frogs, sometimes called meadow frogs, are found from southern Canada to northern Mexico. They are usually green or brown with dark spots. Northern Leopard frogs live in permanent ponds, swamps, marshes, and slow-moving streams throughout forest. Because they are especially sensitive to chemical pollutants, their numbers have declined since the 1970s due to acid rain and deforestation. You can read more about them and hear their distinctive snore-like call on eNature.

Please keep your eye out for frogs or other amphibians in your travels this summer. You might want to take pictures of them and submit them to the second annual Frogs Are Green photo contest (details to come later this week)!