Spring is springing here in Massachusetts, and for me, at least this year, spring means frogs …
© Loree Griffin Burns
Yep. I’ve got more citizen science to explore, and this time it’s an amphibian monitoring project known as FrogWatch. After tagging butterflies and counting birds, monitoring frogs and toads will be a unique challenge … this work is done in the dark and by ear. We don’t look for the frogs, we listen for them, and the best time to hear them is after dark near a suitable water source when the males begin calling for females. Of course, in order to know who is calling you’ve got to learn the calls of all the frogs and toads in your area. (Are you intrigued yet?)
Surprisingly, learning frog calls is pretty straightforward. The official FrogWatch website has everything you need to get started, including photographs and sound clips for every frog and toad in your part of the country. Here in Massachusetts, we have ten species. Learning their calls is tricky, but not impossible. Anyway, check out this page to find a list of all the frogs and toads that live near you. Go on, give it a try.
As if all this weren’t exciting enough, one of my amphibian mentors is also a vernal pool certifier. She’s agreed to let me tag along as she certifies vernal pools in the coming months … and she’s got an extra set of waders.
I LOVE SPRING!