07/14/09

Frog Moon Dance

Well, its a marvelous night for a moondance
With the stars up above in your eyes
A fantabulous night to make romance….

The BBC Earth News reported today that biologist Rachel Grant of the Open University has discovered amphibians around the world synchronize their mating activity by the full moon. The animals use the lunar cycle to coordinate their gatherings, to ensure that enough males and females come together at the same time.

Grant made her discovery while studying salamanders in Italy. She noticed toads all over the road during the full moon. She then collated her data with a 10-year analysis of the mating habits of frogs and toads at a pond near Oxford, England, and with data on toads and newts in Wales collected by colleague Elizabeth Chadwick from Cardiff University, Wales.

This knowledge gives researchers practical information–for example, they will know precisely when to close roads to avoid killing frogs and toads during the mating season. It’s also useful information for FrogWatchers.

Now enjoy this video and imagine a romance—an amphibian romance, that is.

07/12/09

Announcing the FROGS ARE GREEN photo contest

We are happy to announce the FROGS ARE GREEN photo contest. The winner will receive a free “Prince of Amphibians” t-shirt and we’ll feature the photo in the gallery on our blog. See the information on the left side of the blog. (Note: your photo can be of any amphibian, including salamanders).

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.

Have fun!

My husband John and son Jeremy looking at a toad

My husband John and son Jeremy looking at a toad

07/9/09

Prince Charles and a GREEN FROG

As Prince Charles of England noted recently, “Frogs and princes have a long association.” He is hoping this strong frog-prince connection will help get the word out about his environmental charity, The Prince’s Rainforest Project.

The charity has a produced a video in which Prince Charles—as well as the Dalai Lama, Princes William and Harry, Robin Williams, Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Pele, and others—share the camera with a lifelike animated green frog. Even Kermit the Frog makes a cameo appearance!

Prince Charles says about his amphibian mascot: “Our frog is a symbol for the world’s rainforests, a symbol of action against climate change.”

Take a look!

07/7/09

Inmates Help Oregon Spotted Frogs

I was intrigued by this article in The Seattle Times yesterday about a program at the Cedar Creek Corrections Center (Washington state) where inmates are raising Oregon spotted frogs, an endangered species, in the prison. The inmates have stunned researchers because they have been more successful raising these frogs than the local zoos. They are taking care of the frogs under the auspices of the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife and nearby Evergreen State College (my nephew’s alma mater).

The inmates started with 80 Oregon spotted frog eggs in early April. As the eggs grew into tadpoles, then into frogs, they have been responsible for the frequent feedings and tank-water changes, and also for taking detailed notes for state researchers. One thousand frogs are estimated to be released into the wild this fall, which will help this struggling species.

Here’s more information about the Oregon Spotted frog from Herpetology Northwest. If you click on the photo below, you can hear the frog’s call.

Oregon Spotted Frog, copyright 1996, by William Leonard, AmphibiaWeb

Oregon Spotted Frog, copyright 1996, by William Leonard, AmphibiaWeb

07/6/09

Frogs—Nature's Bug Zappers

Fact: A single dwarf puddle frog can eat up to one hundred mosquitoes in a single night.*

In a recent article, “Croak, Croak …No More , ” The Times of India reported that in the coastal area of Karwar, India, where there used to be up to 30 species of frogs, now frogs are rarely seen. This concerns environmentalists and health department officials. Frogs eat mosquitoes—lots of mosquitoes, including those that carry diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, and chikungunya.

Frog catchers in Karwar capture and kill large numbers of frogs and supply them to hotels in Goa and Mumbai, where they end up on the menus as frogs legs. Indian zoologists are concerned about the possible extinction of the frog species in this area. Although it is illegal in India to capture and kill endangered frogs, the laws aren’t strictly enforced in Karwar. Health officials have seen a spurt in epidemics of both dengue fever and chikungunya.

We need to protect our little amphibian bug zappers…they help to keep us all healthy by munching on insect pests.

Bicolored frog, North Wayanad, Kerala. Photo, L. Shyamal

Bicolored frog, North Wayanad, Kerala. Photo, L. Shyamal

*from Frogs: A Chorus of Colors by John L. Behler and Deborah A. Behler.

07/2/09

Rachel Carson's Legacy

Just this past week, I re-read Rachel Carson’s groundbreaking book Silent Spring. First published in 1962, Silent Spring was a wake-up call, warning people about the devastating effects of chemical pesticides on humans and on wildlife. The book spurred changes in laws affecting our air, land, and water.

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My husband reminded me that when he was a boy in the pre-Silent Spring era, he and his friends chased the “Skeeter Truck” on summer days in his suburban Philadelphia neighborhood, breathing in clouds of DDT fumes. DDT has since been banned in this country, and obviously we’ve learned a lot since then. And yet we still don’t fully understand the effects of the various chemicals that are in the products we consume, eat, drink, and use on a regular basis.

A few days ago, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof wrote an op-ed piece, “It’s Time to Learn from the Frogs.” After watching Hedrick Smith’s Frontline show, “Poisoned Waters,” he became concerned about chemicals called endrocrine distruptors (you can watch the show online). These chemicals—widely used in agriculture, industry, and consumer products—have been connected to increases in frog deformities and might also be connected to the rise of abnormalities in newborn boys, particularly genital deformities.

If you go to Kristof’s blog, On the Ground, you can read over 200 comments about his op-ed piece (published June 27th). One of the commenters mentioned that the Rachel Carson Homestead is sponsoring a conference on September 25, 2009, to address this issue. If you click here, you can download from their website an informative 6-page PDF about endrocrine disruptors. I admit I was surprised to learn that a type called phthalates are found in plastics used for food and drink containers, plastic wraps, soft plastic children’s toys, shampoos, shower curtains, and nail polish—to name just to name a few. One would have to live in a plastic bubble to avoid them (or rather an organic non-plastic bubble). In a another post, I will explore the ways in which we can avoid at least some of these chemicals.

Carson’s legacy continues….

UPDATE:  A couple of days after I wrote this, I found out that Stephen Colbert interviewed Nicholas Kristof about this subject on June 27th. Here’s a link to the Colbert Nation where you can watch the episode.  I’m a big fan of Stephen Colbert. Here’s a fun fact you might not know: he once wanted to be a marine biologist.