Saturday, October 17, 2009

Leopard Frogs

Next to snakes, frogs and other amphibians are some of the coolest creatures on the planet. They are cooler than most people in my opinion. Frogs are also thought to be good indicators of environmental conditions because they cannot tolerate very much pollution in the water. Leopard frogs are very common in the southern United States, but not all that common in the north.

These leopard frogs were found in a crystal-clear pool at about 7,000 feet elevation. The water was so cold that my hands went numb in just seconds when reaching for frogs.

Some more shots of frogs:



We thought this was the mama frog because it was the biggest frog at the pool. It croaked loudly when picked up, so it had to be a male.

These frogs by law are controlled for collection, so I only grabbed about 30 of them to sell in the classifieds. Just kidding.

6 comments:

Nolelaw said...

Good stuff Rob. Our dogs spent almost every night this summer laying waste to wandering bullfrogs. I don't know why they like to kill bullfrogs, yet leave the toads alone.

Janet Egan said...

@Nolelaw I was always taught that toads taste yucky to dogs and somehow they know that.

Robby said...

Most toads are very poisonous if eaten. This is second hand info because I have never eaten a toad and then gone into slobbery convulsions to find this out.

Lindy said...

LOL! Roby you crack me up!

Amila Salgado said...

These look very good. You are right about them being cool.

I have been very sick (nausea, vomitting and diarrhea) after handing an Asiatic Toed Bufo melanostictus. way back in the ancient history. And I have not messed around with those types again. I shall return to check you other posts.

Bernard Brown said...

I liked these frogs Rob - if your leopard frogs are like ours, grabbing that many isn't so easy, unless the hand-numbing water kept them slowed down.

Good luck getting through the winter.