Catching Frogs at Berry Springs

There were frogs all right, 

thousands of them. 

Their voices beat the night, 

they boomed and barked and croaked and rattled. 

They sang to the stars, 

to the waning moon, 

to the waving grasses. 

They bellowed long songs and challenges.
~John Steinbeck

Amphibian Watch *- Seriously, doesn't the name sound like something you want to do? Doesn't it take you back to wading in the creek or drainage ditch to catch frogs, turtles, and other critters or sitting at the edge of a pond listening to night sounds - a symphony of croakers?

You probably were unaware that there are armies of volunteers across the country checking on the health of amphibians in creeks, rivers, ponds, and lakes. What do they do? They go out to designated sites - listen/record and catch/measure/photograph/release.

DH and I joined that "army" of volunteers recently. We are taking the Texas Master Naturalist training.** Volunteer hours are required. Two members of our class had participated in a local amphibian watch last month and LOVED it. They shared photos and video --  an enormous bullfrog (are they really that big?) and a tiny green tree frog.

We were in.

Eight of us gathered with KMcC. She is the project leader for this spot, the homestead of an early settler which is now a county park (more on that in a later post). We arrived just before sundown and walked along the marshy waterways in the park - looking and listening.

There are guidelines for how to report - did you see or hear (or both) the frog? What is the call index value (how much, how long, overlap)? And there are other rules - like if you are wearing insect repellent*** you may not touch the frog.

We carried the tools of the intrepid amphibian watcher - nets, buckets, thermometers, microphones, clipboard with reporting form, flashlights (LOTS of flashlights), more than a few binoculars, and cell phones. DH had all the gear he and I needed - waterproof footwear, hats, sweatbands, bug spray, binoculars, and flashlights (LOTS of flashlights).

Many of our group  were experienced birders, identifying what we saw - the Bluebirds and Yellow-crowned Night-heron and discussing other birds we might see. All seemed interested in just about everything - scorpions (none tonight), spiders, insects, and plants. I was able to share the identity of a tree (Redbud) with one of our fellow trainees.**** People were generous, pointing out the creatures they observed and holding the light "just so" for photographs.

Quote of the night? Addressing the bullfrog KMcC commented, "You're lucky we're not herons."

We started to look along the edge of the stream.

"Get the net!" RS caught the bulk of the frogs this evening. He's the guy to watch!

Along the water.

And, as the sun went down, the action started.

The Yellow-crowned Night-heron seemed somewhat used to people. It allowed us to approach fairly close. I have video of it catching supper.

Do you see the turtle just under the water? We saw a few and I attempted to snag this evidence.

This photo is "enhanced" - see the turtle now?

An orb-weaver of some kind.

A snake was observed here, but it avoided capture.

This pump maintains the water level of the ponds. Due to recent rains, the water is flowing over the small dam and the flow here is due to artesian pressure (the water table is so high right now that pressure alone is causing the flow and no "pumping" is needed.

Getting pretty dark.

Before the real action started.

Lots of hands were required to move the frog from net to bucket. Measuring and photographic documentation was quick and efficient.

One holds the lid while another takes a photo.

Where does all this information go? Well, "there's an app for that."*****

Rio Grande leopard frog #1. Isn't it beautiful?

Now, THAT'S a frog - our one bullfrog of the evening

"You're lucky we're not herons."

Rio Grande leopard frog #2

Rio Grande leopard frog #3

At least we think it is a Rio Grande leopard frog

I will get these angles worked out over time.

The harvest moon was rising as we gathered our gear to head home (yes, bad cell photo).

On the way back to the car park we stopped to see if we could find Gulf Coast toads****** under the lights. And we did. GCT #1

More documentation.

Another spider

GCT #2

Measuring GCT #2 and #3.

The Lists:

We saw:
Bluebirds
2 bats
2 Yellow-crowned Night-herons
3 (?) Rio Grande leopard frogs
1 Bullfrog
3 Gulf Coast toads ("Who knew that's what they are called?" says the girl from the gulf coast)
2 spiders
A few turtles
2 snakes (I didn't see them, but this is an honorable bunch and I trust RS (who also caught most of the frogs - that man is a genius with a net!)
Many squirrels
Hundreds of fireflies
A critical mass of Boy Scouts

We heard:
Rio Grande leopard frogs
Cricket frogs
bats (really-there is piece of equipment that picks-up and amplifies the sounds of bats)
Yellow-crowned Night-heron (THAT is a scary cry)
One squirrel making short-work of a pecan
[And all kinds of other stuff - kids, music, crickets, water flowing out of a well and over the small dam - lots of night noises and people noises]

NOTES:

*http://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/wildlife_diversity/texas_nature_trackers/amphibian_watch/amphibian_species/

 https://www.aza.org/frogwatch

** http://txmn.org/

***It is still hot and humid here. The mosquitoes are out. DH and I weighed the value of being mosquito-free versus getting to touch the frogs...mosquito-free won. There will be other opportunities to catch and hold the jumpers.

****She has returned to Texas and is ready to plant trees in her yard. I was relieved she asked about something I knew.

***** http://www.inaturalist.org/projects/herps-of-texas

****** My siblings and I used to hunt Gulf Coast frogs around our house. There were two sure-bet spots. One was the corner of the driveway (near the air conditioner). The other was in our neighbor's yard - near the standpipe. We would "encourage" the toads to vacate their cool damp home with a little help from the water hose. Other times we'd catch them on the back porch where they'd come to catch insects drawn to the lights from inside the house.