Frog breeding

Over the years, we've encountered five species of frogs on our block - the Clicking Froglet (Crinia signifera), the Emerald-Spotted Tree Frog (Litoria peronii), the Striped Marsh Frog (Limnodynastes peronii), the Red-groined Froglet (Paracrinia haswelli) and the Southern Brown Tree Frog (Litoria ewingii). In early Spring 2016 we constructed a small freshwater pond close to our house, hoping that some of these frogs might breed in it. 

Our Frog Bog!

In the next couple of months we often sighted frogs in or around the pond and were regularly entertained in the evenings by a chorus of calling from all five species. 

Southern Brown Tree Frog

Southern Brown Tree Frog

Southern Brown Tree Frog

Male Emerald-Spotted Tree Frog calling

The maniacal calls of the Emerald-Spotted Tree Frog can be heard in this video, which was recorded from our lounge room on a warm summer's evening.

Before long we saw couples of three species in amplexus - the name given to the amphibian love embrace. The male hops onto the back of the female and holds on tightly. As she releases eggs into the water, he fertilises them with sperm.

Emerald-Spotted Tree Frogs in amplexus. The blue pad on the male fore-claw is the nuptial pad, which he uses to hold the female more securely.

Unsurprisingly by late Spring we saw tadpoles in the pond. Over the next few weeks, we followed the development of these tadpoles.

Southern Brown Tree Frog tadpole, feeding on fungi growing on a drowned flying termite - a food chain!

Eat and be eaten - a larval diving beetle has caught this unfortunate taddie.

This Clicking Froglet tadpole has grown hindlegs.

Hindlegs are also well developed on this Southern Brown Tree Frog tadpole.

This guy looks like he could almost jump!

Metamorphosis! By mid December we had come full circle - tiny froglets were seen on the rocks around the pond.

A Clicking Froglet froglet - exploring the terrestrial side of his amphibious world.

A baby Southern Brown Tree Frog.

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