Citizens of Chilliwack, BC, Canada, have closed off roads to protect Western toadlets on their annual migration. The toads breed in wetlands, but must migrate across a busy road to reach the forested areas where they spend the rest of the summer and winter. Over a 3-day period, volunteers saved over 38,000 toads.
Here is a cute slide show of the event and a YouTube video of one tiny straggler’s epic journey across the road.
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.
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:
Have fun!
My husband John and son Jeremy looking at a toad
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!
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
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
*from Frogs: A Chorus of Colors by John L. Behler and Deborah A. Behler.
