It's been a while since I've done a ranger stuff blog.. I have lots of great stuff to blog about, and not a whole lot of time to do it. Story of my life...
After living here in the cottage for the past several months, I have noticed a couple of things with regards to the local amphibian population: 1) there is a ton of great habitat for them in my neighborhood, and 2) I can measure the spring based on who's making what racket when.
In April, frequently even before the ice and snow has all melted, the wood frogs thaw out and make their duck-like, clacking mating calls. They will still be looking for love when the spring peepers emerge and start deafening us with their heavenly sound. The wood frogs are just a tease, winter hasn't let go when they come out.
Spring doesn't really arrive until the peepers start in. Ask anyone in the northern part of North America where peepers live, and we'll all say the same thing: that racket is the true sound of spring. The peepers will still be calling when the gray tree frog adds his song to the mix, but the wood frogs will have moved on.
The gray tree frogs are also loud little buggers, and very well camouflaged. I have been trying to find one for the better part of a month. Tonight, I took the dog for a quick walk, and realized they weren't shutting up when I walked by like they usually do. Bandit and I walked down to the closest frog pond and did a little stealthy tracking by sound. Aha! Frog sighted, and not bashful, either! I quickly headed home, because for once I didn't have the damned camera with me! I dropped off Bandit, grabbed my camera and headed back, never expecting the frog to still be there. Not only was that one still in the same spot, but I found a couple of his rivals as well. Success! Sweet, sweet success! And the green frogs that have started calling in the last week were an added bonus.
The green frogs will continue to make their plucked-loose-banjo-string call well after the gray tree frogs have closed up shop for the year. They weren't quite as oblivious to my presence as the tree frogs...
At some point, the toads will start in. They have the sweetest trill, you'd never guess that beautiful sound could come from a toad. It's one of the few times they go back to the water, where they will lay their eggs in long skeins, as opposed to the frogs, who make a ball of eggs and surround it with jelly.
The salamanders have been out and about, too, but they're harder to track, as they don't spend their time serenading the females like the frogs and toads do.
So there you have it, the season according to frogs.
There was a frog in my shoe once. I didn't know and stuck my foot in there. The end result wasn't pleasent or anything I'm proud of lol. Frogs are cool but they kind of freak me out. 
That's too bad, Aaron. Frogs are some of my favorite animals, I'm bummed they freak you out 
I am one of those people who like amphibians. I find the sounds they make to be rather soothing. Especially at dusk when I'm relaxing outdoors. Always liked to watch frogs around water,especially the large ones. Glad to hear that Bandit is doing better now. I know how worried you were about him.
I've discovered that I live in an amphibian lover's paradise here at the cottage.
Frogs are my favorite and my 2 year old use to when he was a baby we would pick him up and he would kick his feet like a frog so now everything i buy him is frog themed i painted his room with frogshe gas a frog pillow,dream light,curtains bed spread i went crazy with frogs and he loves it lol.
Lee, that's really cool. My stuff is all frogs, horseshoe crabs and dragonflies. Guess what I like, lol.
I never realised just how complex frogs were until I watched some Attenborough program on them, the ability to 'croack' at the right frequency for their species alone to hear etc was mind boggling, but probably a good idea when all get in chorus together. Plus your blog made me instantly think of these guys!
Frogs are absolutely amazing. When I was eight or nine, I got some tadpoles from the frog pond down the street. Every day, I would walk back to the pond with a bucket and get fresh water for them. Out of the five that I had in the fish bowl, one was lost down the drain when my mom helped change the water (she was banned from helping after that), the cat ate one, one died, one turned into the cutest little froglet (that I released back into the pond), and the fifth just got bigger and fatter. I found out later that it was probably a bull frog tadpole, which stay in tadpole form for two years before turning into a froglet.
Which Zelda game is that from?
It's Ocarina of Time; I forget where those frogs are in the game, though.
I saw a frog pop out at me from underground on a sidewalk yesterday, but it was kinda cute to see it hop out and in after it saw me, even if it freaked me out a little. At least that was nowhere near the experience of having a giant rat swim towards me in the swimming pool last summer. lol
Thanks, Joe. I thought maybe that was the game. It's further along than I've gotten so far.
Yeah Joe called it! I ve been seeing them all ribbit in higher res on my 3DS!
I saw a big toad outside a house recently and I thought to pick it up. However, I remembered how freaked out they get when you do that. I didn't want to spook the poor thing so I just watched it.
Toads can get used to you. We had at one of the parks I worked at that used to come out and sit under the security light over the payphone and catch the moths and other insects that were attracted by the light. It got used to me, and would actually come see me when I was down there.
Oh cool.
There's a species of frog nicknamed the Pac-Man Frog. I thought it would be neat to have one as a pet, until I found out you have to feed them baby mice. Ick. Oddly enough, the baby mice are called Pinkies, so the Pac-Man frog is eating Pinky...hm.
Yep, knew about those. I used to work in a pet store. I never thought about the part where the Pacman is eating a pinkie, though.
we've got poisonous toads here. Haven't seen one but apparently they are around and will kill the dogs if they pick them up in their mouth.
I miss frogs on the east coast. I remember the sound of them where I grew up, that and the cicadas.
All toads are poisonous, it's one of their few defenses. They secrete a cardiotoxic steroid from their skin. Some species are more toxic than others, though.
I just saw a frog (or what looked like one) in our backyard pond on Saturday. I like frogs and toads. I find them to be fascinating!
That they are, Jamie! Always nice to find fellow amphibian fans among my friends!
I recently started cutting grass for a couple of elderly folk (I only do it for people who don't get around easily, plus I charge 3/4 the price the bigger companies charge. It's a win-win for them!) and I've seen a lot of toads lately in their yard. I usually catch them whenever I start weed-eating, so I'm constantly stopping and trying to route them into an area I've already mowed so they don't get snipped!
You're welcome, lol.
And I noticed that Spring was finally here whenever the crickets came!
Toads do like to live dangerously, don't they? And I do thank you 
.
I like frogs, but not quite in that way, lol.
LOL. I thought you would like that.
That's a good episode. 
One of our neighbors has a sadly neglected pool that got pretty funky last summer. Next thing you know it was chock full of tadpoles! We tried to keep about 20 of them til they grew up. Most of them made it and we released them in our local pond. It was cool to see the progress they made each week. I'm sure there will be a whole new brood this summer.
That's the best use for a swimming pool I can think of, lol.
It's as if the frogs are taking over. If they will not hide from you perhaps they intend to take over that area you found them in. I would be concerned though if there were that many frogs living near me.