Wednesday, May 1, 2019,
These are two photographs of Wood Frogs. The male is in the pic above and the female is below. As you can see, the two genders look fairly different than each other. The male is darker and largely brown in color. The females tend to be lighter and often wear a rust coloration. Also, while you cannot tell in these photographs, the female is the larger of the two.
In early Spring, the males and females head for freshwater ponds and lakes. The males sing out their calls, which, believe it or not, sound rather like ducks quacking. The female finds her prince and lays her eggs. Once she has done so, the male fertilizes the egg mass and then everybody parts ways till next year. The photo below is of one of the egg masses. After the eggs hatch into tadpoles and the tadpoles morph into juvenile frogs, this new generation will also leave the pond, only to return the following year. JK
JK
That answers my question as to why they are called “Wood” frogs. I had no idea that some frogs don’t spend their entire time in water or wet areas. I thought toads were the only “frogs” to survive without being in water. Interesting!
Hi Jane. Wood Frogs are also one of the first amphibians to begin the whole reproduction process each year. I’ve come cross Wood Frog “choruses” while there was still snow on the ground. JK