The Legendary Green Frog

Photographed at Bosque Santa Lúcia some years ago.  Considered to be a rare find.  I took several shots and I believe that I've never published this one.

Legendary Muiraquitã frog

One of our woodsmen at Bosque Santa Lúcia discovered this juvenile frog in the nearby forest at Bosque Santa Lúcia.  It's a very rare frog, maybe in extinction.  Passengers from the cruise ship, VIKING SKY were indeed fortunate to see this frog.  Many had seen paintings of the frog in the Santarém Museum before coming to the Bosque.

Frog hanging out in a palm

Frog hiding out

Rare green frog at Bosque Santa Lúcia

Helmut Fungus

Frog eggs

Anyone for frog caviar?

Frog x Snake x Me

A strange noise coming from the woods next to my office at the Arboretum; the dog that hangs out there was whimpering and showed reluctance to get any closer to the source of the disturbance. "Sounds like a cat in distress", I thought to myself. After hearing the sounds for a few minutes, I decided to have a closer look. To my surprise, I discovered a "papo-ovo" snake latched on to a rather large frog. The attack may have been going on for some time because the frog's right hind leg was swollen up and the anus of the frog bloody. Click on the images for enlargements. I decided to come to the frog's rescue by nudging it gently with my boot. It immediately released the frog and went for me. Third image. The frog remained put for a few seconds and then quickly jumped away to disappear into the woods nearby. I was impressed how fast the snake ran after it. It had no intention of losing lunch. I would like to think that the frog escaped, but I think it was much to crippled to to do so. The situation wasn't really any of my business, but I felt sorry for the frog.

Tree frog on dry leaf

Tadpoles

I took these pictures using the zoom of a simple point and shoot digital camera. I was surprised to see that I captured the movements of some of the tadpoles in that foamy material the frogs produce to protect eggs and the tadpoles. Bottom image is that of the foam as secured in the notch of two trees. Top image, the tadpoles moving about.

Frog on painting

On this past Saturday, I turned an oil painting over to see how my spider farm was coming along. Not to my surprise, there was more than spiders. There was this little frog, plus a large gecko, which quickly disappeared. There was only time to get this image of the frog.

Frog in palm

This little frog was safely tucked in behind an old sheath of a palm. It's a way of staying in the dark .. and away from the snakes.

Frogs, foam nest

Some frogs prepare a foamy nest to protect their eggs from predators and also to keep them in a humid environment. I discovered this one partially attached to a supporting timber under the footbridge.

Green frog

In all the years I've been at Bosque Santa Lucia, this is only the third time that I've seen this species of frog. After posting an image of the second find, a reader (anatohmy) posted the following comment: "I think this frog may be infected with batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, a disease caused by chytrid fungus. this disease is a main cause for the current global decline of amphibians. usually frogs that are infected with it seem depressed, are immobile, and die shortly thereafter. very sad!!" The frog in the attached image seems to be in better physical condition than the others. Search "green frog" on this blog to see pictures of the first two finds. I found this one in a small branch of foliage that had gotten caught in a palm frond.

Holes, continued

These holes have been around for a long time. My guess is that armadillos were the original dwellers. I can also imagine that they are in the high rent district at Bosque Santa Lucia. Some day I'll stick around for awhile to see what comes out.

Frog on bench

I sat down next to this frog. It didn't turn into a princess, but we had a great conversation.

Tiny frog

I've had enough of gardens for the time being. Time to get back to my own garden, Bosque Santa Lucia. This frog is so small and cryptic, I wouldn't have seen it, if it hadn't moved out of my path. I've seen a lot of frogs, but never this type. It's tiny! About the size of the nail on my small finger. I was running out of battery, or I'd have followed it around for awhile. On the bottom image, that mass of seeds is part of monkey poop, I assume.

Frogs, as tadpoles

Next to the foam nest shown in the previous post, I discovered more tadpoles in a more advanced stage of development. The mud hole that hosted them was drying up fast, given that it hadn't rain for a few days. I thought they might be in trouble, but nature came to the rescue that night. It rained and rained .. and rained. Frogs seem to have a fix on the weather.

Frogs, foam nest

It looks like someone might be washing clothes with a bit too much soap, but in fact what you see is a frog nest. There are certain kinds of frogs that whip up foam from their body for the purpose of creating an environment suitable for keeping their eggs and the tadpoles humid. I found this nest on the side of a trail at the Tapajós National Forest. Those dark spots are tadpoles.