Here is an update on my experiment involving Wood frog vocalizations, I apologize that I didn’t update you all sooner, but with the recent death of one my wood frogs involved with this experiment, I had to put it on hold. Here are the results from my first trial, Test A, Frog 6 (aka Lil’ Porker). For those of you not familiar with my experiment, here is a link to the post:
http://www.frogforum.net/frogs/10993...xperiment.html Enjoy
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+Final Report for Frog 6, Test A
During the first four days of the experiment, the frog was left to acclimate to the new surroundings. The temperature was maintained between 49-54F, the humidity between 50-75%, and the lighting was left on for about 10 hours each day, (conditions similar to the breeding season). The frog adjusted to the new conditions beautifully and did not display any signs of major stress. The frog continued to eat and digest normally. The frog also buried itself into the moss and was sluggish in movements (i.e. was slow to react when any crickets would pass by); these were the only two major behavioral changes observed.
After the acclimation process, the frog was then exposed to a series of Wood frog vocalizations for three days. These calls were played during 11:00am to 1:00pm and during 10:00pm to 12:00am. These are the times in which Wood frog vocalization is most active during the mating season, in late April and early May here in Fairbanks, AK. During this time the following observations were noted:
+Day 5 (11/25/11): Frog was given 2 crickets, both were consumed; the light was left on for 12hrs. Today I began the vocalization test (Test A). 11:00a-1:00p report: Vocalization CD was played near the frog's tank. On track 2, the frog perked up and its vocal sacs appeared to be swollen, but no sound was heard. Phonotaxis was not observed. 10:00p-12:0)a report: No phonotaxis; frog stayed in one location all day.
+Day 6 (11/26/11): The frog was given 2 crickets at approx 8:00, one in which was observed to be eaten. The light was left on for 10.5 hrs. Report for 11:00a-1:00p: No phonotaxis was observed and the frog did not respond with calls of his own. The frog remained in the same location throughout the whole test. 10:00p-12:00a report: The frog did become alert and poked its head out of the moss, however, no phonotaxis was observed and no calls were made.
+Day 7 (11/27/11): Of the two crickets given, one was observed to be eaten. Light was remained on for 10hrs. Report for 11:00am-1:00pm: The frog remained in the same location as the previous day. No phonotaxis was observed and no vocalizations were heard. The frog did not show signs of alertness either. 10:00p-12:00a report: No vocalizations were recorded and no phonotaxis was observed.
What are my thoughts: What I previously predicted (that the frog would display phonotaxis and respond with calls of his own) did not fall through. It may be that the frog thought it was time to hibernate or that Wood frogs will only vocalize during a precise barometric pressure level. I would like to compare the barometric pressure levels displayed earlier during the mating season with the ones maintained during the experiment. I also hope to establish a pattern of some sort to help adjust my experiment for future trials. However, these thoughts are to be treated as immature until the entire experiment is complete and results can be compared further.