Every early Spring, tree frogs have returned to mate in the Frog Mitigation Area (FMA), which is a pond in my side yard. Their mating is called “amplexus.”
Last year, the frogs’ choruses boomed from the FMA by the first days of March. This year, about five hustling frogs arrived two weeks ago, ahead of when I expect the main body of the chorus frog to migrate back to the Frog Mitigation Area. Tree frogs, also called chorus frogs or peepers; to scientists, they are Pseudacris regilla.
If more frogs migrated, they are quiet. No frogs sounded off last night or during the day of March 6th, in startling contrast to last year’s symphony in ribbets.
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The unrelenting cycle of unseasonable cold and snow continues. The little froggies hunker down somewhere near, waiting it out.
There was snow on the car when I got up this morning. An hour later, as I coaxed the car over the Sylvan Summit (761 feet ASL) more snow pelted the windshield.
At 8am, the FMA’s air temperature was 40 and the water temperature 45 F. The frogs need 54 degree water to fertilize and lay eggs, so there’s no hot action in the FMA right now.
This year I’ve added Upper Pear Pond to the FMA. This adds a second pond to an existing waterfall and 25 foot long, 1 foot wide creek to another 6 x 6 foot 1 foot deep ponds.
Frogs attach their fertilized eggs to underwater plants. But it’s been too cold for me to install several water plants into Upper Pear Pond. Instead, I’ve sunken a few stemmy plants, and even a dead plant trunk, and a few pieces of string and line, for the frogs to use for attaching eggs.
I also built up the sides of Little Metolius Creek, which runs between Upper and Lower Pear Ponds. As the tadpoles grew last year, they flocked into the creek’s shoelace-deep water and abandoned the larger pond. This year I’ve doubled the shallow waters’ area, to accommodate more tadpoles.
The tadpoles feast on pears and pear leaves that fall into the Creek. I add various greens and lettuce to provide a balanced diet.
The unrelenting sequence of cold and rain on snow and more rain has stressed the FMA’s plants. Even the mosses look drowned.
NOW IT’S YOUR TURN
What have you noted in your area or travels? As usual, please post your observations and general location in your comments. I’ll respond in between working on an endless list of flood control projects.
Be sure to peruse Meteor Blade’s valuable "Spotlight on Green News & Views,” every Saturday at 5pm Pacific Time and every Wednesday at 3:30 Pacific Time on the Daily Kos front page. Please recommend and comment in the diary.