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Re: Frogs

Subject: Re: Frogs
From: Walter Knapp <>
Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2002 15:46:38 -0500
KACastelein and DJLauten wrote:

> Definately the Treefrogs are calling, but there is also another species 
> calling.  I should probably know this, but frogs are not my specialty. 
> The second species is one of the chorus type frogs, as they sing from 
> the ponds in a chorus, chirping manner.  The treefrogs call more spread 
> out and not necessarily from a water location (as the one of the side of 
> the house the other day!).

I'm really rusty on the frogs out there. Our early spring ones are the 
Spring Peepers in the trees and bushes and Upland Chorus Frogs at the 
water, along with the American Toad and Southern Leopard Frog. At least 
where I live, other parts of Georgia have others. The only chorus frog 
in your area is the Pacific Treefrog, the one you are hearing up in the 
bushes and so on. If you are hearing another frog, it's probably a 
Ranid. Rana aurora, the Northern Red Legged Frog occurs in your area. 
Your other choices are the Western Toad, Bufo boreas, and the Tailed 
Frog, Ascaphus truei. I know the call of the Pacific Treefrog, don't 
know the others right off.

> Around here temperature does not seem to matter much, although on the 
> southern coast of Oregon if we hit the high 30's at night, that's cold! 
>   (yeah we are lightweights when comes to the cold!).  What we have 
> found is wind is a much bigger factor.  If it is cold and still, or warm 
> and still, the frogs will call.  If it is windy and warm, the frogs 
> won't be calling much.  To help understand the geography a bit, we have 
> a dry and a rainy season.  Dry is summer when it literally does not rain 
> for up to 5 months or so.  The frogs, no matter how warm it is, can't 
> breed then because the ponds without predators are dry, so they breed in 
> the winter (which I find amazing).  We finally started to get heavy rain 
> after a very dry fall.  The frogs didn't waste any time and are singing 
> like crazy.  The winter storms we get come in from the SW, pushing warm 
> tropical air.  So pre-storm and storm conditions here are very windy and 
> warm (we get storms with 50-75mph winds regularly).  After the storms it 
> cools off but rarely down below 38F or so.  These colder quieter nights 
> often result in lots of frog activity.

I spent many years studying biologic subjects at Oregon State 
University, so am familiar with the climate. Did a good part of my 
younger years in the NW as well. At 38F, the Spring Peepers are happy 
here too. And wind is a factor for them since they call from up in the 
branches. Even frogs that call from the water slow down when it's windy. 
Around here most of the real windy periods in the winter are cold air 
coming down from the north. Not much between us and the north pole. Cold 
here is around 0-5F, though that's not all that common. We can be 
anywhere from that to the 70's in January, depending on where it comes 
from. Today is in the 60's, first warm day in a week or two.

> 
> Having an outdoor hot tub really helps one tune into these nighttime 
> activities!

Right now I'm in the process of redoing the utilities in mine, replacing 
heater, controller and blower. So it's out of action at the moment. But 
you certainly get to notice what's going on.

Walt




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