Frogs

All summer I have been walking the trails behind my house here in Holyrood and I have observed more frogs than I have seen since I was a young boy. They are everywhere - in ponds near the top of the hills (750 ft elevation), on the trails, in small puddles, on the bogs, and I even saw one about halfway up one of the hills hiding in a muddy footprint full of water. For years, there were few frogs around this area, but it appears that they are making a comeback here.

About 30 years ago, schools across the province were asked to participate in Project Frog and were asked to capture and kill specimens of frogs then send them to the government (or university) to have them identified. I wouldn't allow my students to kill the frogs, but photographed them instead. The photos were used to identify the species near Norris Arm, where I taught at the time.

The photos today may be used to identify the species, but it can be difficult because you will notice that the frog's colour looks different under water. I took these photos from a standing position with my 75-300 mm zoom lens. I had my close-up lens with me, but I thought that it would hop into the woods and disappear if I moved closer. I moved slowly to capture close up views from a variety of angles.

I think the one shown in today's photos is a green frog.