Summer Big & Summer Small

During my inspection of the Fleet today I noted that some of the toadlets are much smaller than others.  If I didn't know better I would think there has been a little undetected hanky-panky going on in the pond.  I have no idea why they aren't all the same size or at least close... maybe my eyes are going fast in my old age and what I'm seeing are snails... naw, snails don't have little legs and tails and propel these guys around the pond like a bunch of black sperm in search of the prize.  I'm going to chalk it up to another of Mother Nature's tricks. 

I saw one Typhoon Class Submarine look'n guy with legs about 1/2 inch long and a head comparable to the size of my pinkie (if you have no idea what the size of my pinkie is then come on over and take a look).  The little ones are about half-pinkie size.  The typhoon class guys are in the majority and if your patient you can see a plethora of them in deeper parts of the pond.

It won't be long before we start finding little toads in the flower beds.  I love it when we see them as they are so cute and just miniature adults.  I hope I can get a few pictures of the babies after they start to come ashore from their submarine duty.  Here is a link to some of last years baby pictures.

With August just around the corner the algae is coming on strong.  We need that Woodhouse's Toad couple to come back for another romantic weekend so we will have more algae eaters trying to stay up with August Algae (a wicked green wench).

Teeny Tiny Toes

The toadpoles are growing almost as fast as the algae.  I was eye-balling the fleet today and thought I saw the beginnings of their hind legs.  It was difficult to tell as the water is getting murky and the toadlets are afraid of anything that moves.  I finally captured one in a mason jar and got an up-close and personal view of the appendage area.  Sure enough there are itsy-bitsy-teeny-weenie legs growing.  I mean to tell you these legs are really small but there is no doubt they are legs.

These toadlets were just new eggs on July 9, only 17 days ago.  With the growth of legs they also start changing in many other areas.  Their mouths will start to change from round to that wide grin that toads and frogs are known.  They will change their insides to be able to digest bugs and such versus only eating algae and detritus now.  Their lungs will develop and they will slowly loose their gills.  There are so many changes going on with these guys it's amazing.  Amazing about the changes and amazing about how fast they come about.

Love this mother nature stuff.

Whoohoo!

Growing Old in Toadlet Pond

We went on a heat retreat to Ourey, Colorado and enjoyed the sites and ambiance not to mention my granddaughters 10th birthday.  Upon our return I prepared for a trip to Denver.  I left for Denver then next day to check on #1 son.  I'm now home, safe and sound, securely entrenched in my well worn rut.  Comfortable it is.

Of course this has nothing to do with toads or the pond.  I'm work'n up to it... some of these things take a little time.

I was out this morning checking on the toadpoles and was briefly alarmed as there was nary a toad yet a fleet!  I soon discovered that in my absence these little guys have discovered that moving things are scary and toadlets should hide if movement is observed.  I had moved and they hid.  They hid good enough that I couldn't see them(amazing huh).  I was still for a short time and they came out of hiding and resumed their routine of eating algae and eating algae.

My oh my have they grown and in the past 5 or 6 days.  At least doubling in size.  That equates to being a half-inch long or a little more and growing a fat body with a small tail.  It's been 13 days since they were "born" or "deposited" or "purged" or "laid" from/by momma toad.  So much change in so little time.

Here is a picture:

Whoohoo!

They're Everywhere!

I can't believe how fast things are changing in the toadlet arena.  When I checked on the "fleet" this morning I find they have spread out to every pond.  That means dozens have taken the wild ride through the skimmer and pump to be spit out of the water pipe into the bio-falls.  While there are still about half stick'n close to their birth-rock the rest have ventured to all points of the compass.

Whoohoo!

Growing Fast

What a change we've see in just one day.  Some of the toadpoles have moved as far as the bridge to the west and Humpty Dumpty Falls to the east.  There are a few swimming in the middle of the bridge pond.  In the area where the eggs were laid much of the algae has been eaten and is cleaner than it was just yesterday.  Even with a thousand or more of these little algae eaters I doubt if we will run out of food for them.

Once again I offer pictures of the "fleet."  While it is very similar to yesterdays pictures these creatures are actually a day older than they were... so there.

This shows the toadlets more dispursed than they were one day ago.

The red rock is the same one in yesterdays post but the toadpoles have bigger heads.  Pictures by Becca.

There are a few tadpoles in this picture.  This is the area were the eggs were laid.  I thought it was a
pretty neat picture with the reflection so decided to share.

Whoohoo!

Toadpole 2010 Update

It was only a few days ago, Sunday to be specific, when we saw some tails sticking out of a few eggs.  They would swish back and forth and then rest.  From my perspective it appeared they were trying to get out of their egg.  On Monday we could see many individual tadpoles with more on the way.   Here it is Tuesday and ALL the eggs have hatched and there are hundreds if not a thousand of these little toadpoles hang'n around their birth-rock.  It seems to take them a couple of days to get going as they haven't strayed very far from home.  I assume they are still developing and figuring out how they are going to eat all that algae in the pond.  They can have it all as far as I'm concerned.

I took some pictures to give y'all a better idea of what is happening in a toadlets world.  Their length is approximately an eighth of an inch from the tip of their nose to the end of their tail.  In a few days they will have dispersed throughout the ponds.  If you go to last years posts about the toadlets you'll find that they survived going in the skimmer, through the pump and being spit out into the bio-falls.  They are tough little guys.

I wonder if we will have another batch this year... never satisfied I guess.

Whoohoo!!

Tons of Toad Eggs Just Appeared!

Whooooohoooooo... I'm going to be a Toad-Daddy again!!!

Today started out just like any other day.  I awoke too early but couldn't go back to sleep; I made coffee; I fed the birds.  Then, the first bump in my mundane daily routine on Red Tail Ridge.  Our silent resident toad was sitting on the patio by the steps that go into the house.  I stopped to talk with s/he but the toad had nothing to say so I went into the house.  Looking out the window I watched the toad hop along the patio and disappear under my wooden box that stores everything I hold dear except for what's in the garage.

When Ginger got home from the gym she went out to water and I was telling her there may be a toad under the wooden box.  A few minutes later Ginger told me the toad was not under the wooden box but in the "spa" with another toad on her back.  Then she added the fantastic news that there were "a ton of eggs" in the pond.  That was enough to almost make me choke on my peanut butter and dill pickle sandwich.

The whispering of sweet nothings, the special look, the raised eyebrow, the tempting smile and then the wink, was all it took and then, just then, the big geewhiz began.  Sometime between 8:00 AM this morning and noon the female's eggs were expelled, immediately fertilized by the male, to fall onto the rock as pictured below.  Oh the heat, the passion.  You don't think I should rate this post XXX do you?

Working on the assumption the male is a fertile guy... uno, no major accidents riding his bike when he was a kid or exposed to too much radiation when hang'n in the womb...  we will have toadlets, tadpoles or toadpoles.  By what name you refer to these creatures makes no difference.  Mother Nature at work just makes me excited.

So here are a few pictures:

Can you find the toads in this picture?  Not near as easy as looking for an insect on a daisy!  If you can't find them
let me know (via comment if you like) and I'll give you a hint.

As you can see, the male is much smaller than the female.  I just love the way he "hugs" her.  If I could only hear and understand what he's saying to her... bet it sounds a lot like Peppy LePew of Loony Tunes origin.

I'm wondering if the reason the toad was so silent was the male wasn't around and it was the female we kept seeing.  The females don't croak as it's the males job to be aggressively pursuing her and fending off other suitors.

 Just below the feet of the toads pictured above and in the next couple of photos you see the "ton" of eggs. 

Last year it took 5 or 6 days for the eggs to hatch into toadpoles... very small toadpoles.  I expect it to be about the same amount of time this year.  It's the temperature of the water that is the main item in determining gestation of the eggs.

All this is very exciting for me.  Probably making my fan yawn just reading all this drivel. 

More pictures of future toadlets.

Do you remember the difference between toad eggs and frog eggs?  If you don't know the difference you need to re-read this blog.  

This is your Toad-Daddy signing off!







Whoohoo!!!

Daisy! It's the 4th of July...

I believe it was the TV show "Duke's of Hazard" that had the Daisy that I couldn't stop goggling.  That show started back in 1979.  So let's do a little math... take 2010 and subtract 1979 from that you get... let's see now... damn can't even figure it out with my shoes off... OH! I think that would be 31 years ago.  An interesting fortuity is I would have been that same age... 31 that is. 

I was briefly tempted to post a picture of Ms. Daisy Mae Duke but must admit that fire has diminished somewhat and the picture, mental picture, doesn't do for me what it once did.  Maybe I should post a picture of the "Over the Hill Gang!"

So this 4th of July I present to you, my loyal fan, with this beauty of the day.  The daisy's pictured below were digitized just this morning.  I think they are glorious flowers that seem to worship the summer day.  A fitting flower for the 4th of July.

Can you find the insect in this picture?  Yea, it wasn't that hard was it?

Whoohoo!