Blogtoberfest day 12 - the frogs are back

During winter the frogs almost disappeared but they have returned and most are at least twice the size of what they were b4, some 3 times. One is the size of my thumb.

More frogs

I hope you are not sick of seeing all the frogs in my garden as I have another serve for you.

This morning John decided to put a pump back into our small water feature and fill it up with water, within a very short period of time the frogs had moved in. Now we just have to stop Ziggy from drinking from it.

Yesterday I rang and then emailed photos of my frogs to the local Parks and Wildlife office. Below is the response I received - which answered my questions very well.


Frogs on hand – appear to be Litoria dentata, Bleating Tree Frog also known as Kefersteins Tree Frog (protected species)

2 green frogs & Green Frog 1 - appear to be first year Litoria aurea Green and Golden Bell Frog (green form) (Endangered species)

Frog on hand – appears to be first year Green and Golden Bell Frog (green form) (Endangered species)

Brown frog with green stripes – Green and golden Bell frog (green and golden form) (Endangered species)

Brown frog on window ledge & Frog on leaf - appear to be Bleating Tree Frog also known as Kefersteins Tree Frog

Obviously your place is frog –friendly. These animals may be recent recruits to the population following February large rain events. They can breed from about October to March. We have now had two good summers in a row for suitable breeding of frogs like the ones at your place. Large breeding events like these sustains the population through years of drought when no breeding occurs. Brundee Swamp Nature Reserve (eastern end of Boston Rd) is one of the most important sites in the Shoalhaven for conserving the habitat and populations of Green and Golden Bell Frog. Following metamorphosis into frogs from tadpoles these animals may have dispersed along drainages and grassy corridors from their site of breeding to your place. Alternatively they may have bred in nearby ponds or waterholes or even at your place if you have a pond or two. In dry years you may not see them. The GGBF is unusual in that it likes to bask in the sun during the day (mornings), that is why they are readily observable, so sunny spots are good too. Try and maintain some moist, dark/shady areas in your garden where they can hide and survive dry spells, winter and drought.


Further information

Call into our office for a GGBF brochure with more info or phone and a brochure can be posted to you.

DECCW information site for Green and Golden Bell frog
http://threatenedspecies.environment.nsw.gov.au/tsprofile/profile.aspx?id=10483


This site has images of Green and Golden bell frogs that show the range of colour variation in them
http://images.google.com.au/images?um=1&hl=en&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=3&q=litoria+aurea&btnG=Search+images

http://images.google.com.au/images?um=1&hl=en&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=litoria+caerulea&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=&start=0
you may like to keep an eye out for this charismatic frog the Green Tree frog

If you are ever at Sydney international airport check out the giant green and golden bell frog made out of small tiles. The model was built for visitors arriving for Olympic games 2000. This species was the mascot for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games as there is a wild population at Homebush Olympic park.

More Frogs - green ones this time

Thought I would start this post with who is normally the star of our garden - our beautiful border collie Ziggy Stardust. isn't he gorgeous?

The frog story continues.....................

But now we have green ones. I would have last month that frogs scare me - I loved to look at pics but didn't want them near me. But I must admit I am warming to these ones - they just better not jump on me as I am sure that would be an entirely different story.

I have no idea where these frogs have come from as we really don't have a suitable hatching area on our property - ie no ponds but 2 tiny little water features that often are dry from Ziggy drinking from them. There are however a few properties with dams so maybe they have migrated from there.

I also have no idea what type of frogs these are. Let me know if you do.

Some have a lot of brown on them like this one - which is why I wondered if these were the little brown frogs just maturing.

Frog party in the weeds.

It really is cute, isn't it??????