Weekly Update on My Wood Frog Vocalization Experiment :)

[frogluver]

+Final Report for Frog 5, Test A

The first four days of this trial in my experiment were dedicated to the acclimation process: Frog 5 (aka Lil’ Piggy) was left to adjust to the new conditions similar to the breeding season (49-54F temperatures and 50-75% humidity). The frog adjusted to the experimental surroundings smoothly and did not seem to display any signs of major stress. However, the frog did not eat consistently as usual. Despite this fact, the frog maintained a good weight. Similar to Frog 6, Frog 5 buried itself into the moss and was sluggish in movements (i.e. slow to react).

*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 12/02/11: Frog remained hidden in moss. Given 2 dusted crickets; 1 seen eaten. 11a-1p report: No phonotaxis was observed; the frog remained hidden throughout the test. No vocalization observed or recorded. 10p-12a report: Before the test began, I located frog in the moss (was found on the left side of tank) and he was disturbed from hiding. At 11:28p, the frog changed location but not in direction of sound source. No vocalization was recorded.

•Day 6 12/03/11: Frog was visible but partially hidden. 11a-1p report: Frog did not display signs of phonotaxis. One call (vocalization) was recorded on video camera and recorder. Call was given in between 12:20p and 1:00p during the first tracks of the CD (2nd play). Temp was 52F and hum was 50%. 10p-12a report: No phonotaxis observed and no vocalizations observed either.

•Day 7 12/04/11: Frog is same location as yesterday. Not much movement observed. 11a-1p report: Frog did not display signs of phonotaxis. No calls were given either. However, frog vomited or did something similar to the gesture in between 11 and 12p. 10p-12a report: No phonotaxis was observed/recorded and no vocalizations were observed either.

What are my thoughts: This frog showed more results than Frog 5; however, the barometric pressure probably had an effect on the results. During the three days in which the frog was exposed to the recordings, it snowed heavily, rained, outside temperatures increased to 30-45F due to a Chinook, and winds were up to 55-60mph (quite a contrast to the calm weather conditions experienced during the test with Frog 6). I would also like to note that—based on the observations thus far—that the frog(s) may think it’s time to hibernate, based on the fact that they are brought into colder conditions then they are used to. This could be an explanation as to why they do not vocalize or display signs of phonotaxis.

[Poly]

+Final Report for Frog 5, Test A

The first four days of this trial in my experiment were dedicated to the acclimation process: Frog 5 (aka Lil’ Piggy) was left to adjust to the new conditions similar to the breeding season (49-54F temperatures and 50-75% humidity). The frog adjusted to the experimental surroundings smoothly and did not seem to display any signs of major stress. However, the frog did not eat consistently as usual. Despite this fact, the frog maintained a good weight. Similar to Frog 6, Frog 5 buried itself into the moss and was sluggish in movements (i.e. slow to react).

*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 12/02/11: Frog remained hidden in moss. Given 2 dusted crickets; 1 seen eaten. 11a-1p report: No phonotaxis was observed; the frog remained hidden throughout the test. No vocalization observed or recorded. 10p-12a report: Before the test began, I located frog in the moss (was found on the left side of tank) and he was disturbed from hiding. At 11:28p, the frog changed location but not in direction of sound source. No vocalization was recorded.

•Day 6 12/03/11: Frog was visible but partially hidden. 11a-1p report: Frog did not display signs of phonotaxis. One call (vocalization) was recorded on video camera and recorder. Call was given in between 12:20p and 1:00p during the first tracks of the CD (2nd play). Temp was 52F and hum was 50%. 10p-12a report: No phonotaxis observed and no vocalizations observed either.

•Day 7 12/04/11: Frog is same location as yesterday. Not much movement observed. 11a-1p report: Frog did not display signs of phonotaxis. No calls were given either. However, frog vomited or did something similar to the gesture in between 11 and 12p. 10p-12a report: No phonotaxis was observed/recorded and no vocalizations were observed either.

What are my thoughts: This frog showed more results than Frog 5; however, the barometric pressure probably had an effect on the results. During the three days in which the frog was exposed to the recordings, it snowed heavily, rained, outside temperatures increased to 30-45F due to a Chinook, and winds were up to 55-60mph (quite a contrast to the calm weather conditions experienced during the test with Frog 6). I would also like to note that—based on the observations thus far—that the frog(s) may think it’s time to hibernate, based on the fact that they are brought into colder conditions then they are used to. This could be an explanation as to why they do not vocalize or display signs of phonotaxis.

Sorry for missing your replies Autumn! I definitely think the colder temperatures is the reason you have not observed much vocalization, and barometric pressure must have a large influence. Maybe you should try to bring the temperatures up a bit?

[frogluver]

Sorry for missing your replies Autumn! I definitely think the colder temperatures is the reason you have not observed much vocalization, and barometric pressure must have a large influence. Maybe you should try to bring the temperatures up a bit?

Haha, np ! Yes, I have to agree.....and that's were Test B (testing the frogs for vocalizations/phonotaxis in normal living conditions) comes in lol !

[frogluver]

Oh, I almost forgot!!! You'll never guess what happened on Monday!

So I put back Lil’ Piggy, the frog I just got done testing with, into his normal living quarters with Lil’ Porker, the first frog I tested. Lil’ Porker, (who had been croaking for the past four nights), seemed happy to have his tank mate back, as the two frogs sat together for several hours. Well, at around noon—one of the times in which mating activity is most active during the WF breeding season—Lil’ Porker decides to grasp Lil’ Piggy around the waist, as if he were a female! Then, Lil’ Porker starts to croak (Piggy didn’t call any release calls, but tried to squirm away which he was successful at doing lol).

Lil’ Porker was displaying signs of mating behavior! The conditions from Test A (the cold temps, humidity, etc..) must have made him think it was time to hibernate. And then when I brought him back to normal conditions last week, must have thought “hibernation” was over and it was thus time to mate. I've never experienced mating behaviors among my Wood frogs or in keeping WF’s over the past 7 years. Maybe this discovery means there is a way to successfully breed Wood frogs in captivity, which—as far to my knowledge—has never been done before.

Pretty cool or what?

[Poly]

Oh, I almost forgot!!! You'll never guess what happened on Monday!

So I put back Lil’ Piggy, the frog I just got done testing with, into his normal living quarters with Lil’ Porker, the first frog I tested. Lil’ Porker, (who had been croaking for the past four nights), seemed happy to have his tank mate back, as the two frogs sat together for several hours. Well, at around noon—one of the times in which mating activity is most active during the WF breeding season—Lil’ Porker decides to grasp Lil’ Piggy around the waist, as if he were a female! Then, Lil’ Porker starts to croak (Piggy didn’t call any release calls, but tried to squirm away which he was successful at doing lol).

Lil’ Porker was displaying signs of mating behavior! The conditions from Test A (the cold temps, humidity, etc..) must have made him think it was time to hibernate. And then when I brought him back to normal conditions last week, must have thought “hibernation” was over and it was thus time to mate. I've never experienced mating behaviors among my Wood frogs or in keeping WF’s over the past 7 years. Maybe this discovery means there is a way to successfully breed Wood frogs in captivity, which—as far to my knowledge—has never been done before.

Pretty cool or what?

Wow that's awesome! I find it odd he didn't make any release calls, my large male toad, Bufo, if is even tapped by his tank mate on the back will make release calls! Hmm, maybe the "hibernation" conditions it experienced (even though they were meant as mating) made it, like you say, think that it's winter, then the normal conditions of it's terrarium were mating season conditions, so you've been trying soo hard to replicate the mating season conditions of WILD wood frogs by lowering the temperature when actually your TAME-ish wood frogs thought their terrarium was the mating season, after of course the older conditions. So, maybe if you take the group of them, cool them all down for a week, then get their regular viv set-up with mating call recordings playing, and re-introduce them, you'll get/see/record some vocalizations! Ohhh this is soo exciting (!), I wish I was in Alaska with you documenting all of this on my video camera!!!

[frogluver]

Wow that's awesome! I find it odd he didn't make any release calls, my large male toad, Bufo, if is even tapped by his tank mate on the back will make release calls! Hmm, maybe the "hibernation" conditions it experienced (even though they were meant as mating) made it, like you say, think that it's winter, then the normal conditions of it's terrarium were mating season conditions, so you've been trying soo hard to replicate the mating season conditions of WILD wood frogs by lowering the temperature when actually your TAME-ish wood frogs thought their terrarium was the mating season, after of course the older conditions. So, maybe if you take the group of them, cool them all down for a week, then get their regular viv set-up with mating call recordings playing, and re-introduce them, you'll get/see/record some vocalizations! Ohhh this is soo exciting (!), I wish I was in Alaska with you documenting all of this on my video camera!!!

Haha, I know! Maybe he didn't feel entirely threatened?

Exactly!! And now I think I've totally confused my frogs hahaha ;D!! Maybe I'll get some more vocalizations with Test B.....but at least I've recorded some already from Test A . Ah, I know me too!!!

[Poly]

Haha, np ! Yes, I have to agree.....and that's were Test B (testing the frogs for vocalizations/phonotaxis in normal living conditions) comes in lol !

So Test B will be in their regular vivarium?

I want to try this with my chubby frogs, becuase just yesterday, my smaller chubby (Newman) grabber my larger one (Bobber) and wouldn't let go until bobber burried into the soil with newman still on her (I guess...?) back. [Couldn't find my camera! ] Female chubby frogs are larger than males, so it makes sense because Boober is much larger!

So imagine the response I may get if I put them in a rain chamber!

[frogluver]

So Test B will be in their regular vivarium?

I want to try this with my chubby frogs, becuase just yesterday, my smaller chubby (Newman) grabber my larger one (Bobber) and wouldn't let go until bobber burried into the soil with newman still on her (I guess...?) back. [Couldn't find my camera! ] Female chubby frogs are larger than males, so it makes sense because Boober is much larger!

So imagine the response I may get if I put them in a rain chamber!

Actually, it will be in the "testing tank" (the terrarium on the front page of FF). I separate the frogs one by one and experiment them individually, which allows me to monitor the results a bit easier. But, the conditions will resemble their normal range of living conditions.

You should definitely try it!! This is great Royce......you gotta fill me in on all the details when you do this!! Maybe soon you'll have baby Newmans and Bobbers ;D!

[frogluver]

Report for Frog 8, Test A

The first four days of this trial in my experiment were dedicated to the acclimation process: frog 8 (aka Digger) was left to adjust to the new conditions—conditions different from what the frog is used to— similar to the breeding season (49-54F temperatures and 50-75% humidity). The frog appeared to adjust to the experimental surroundings just fine, with a few rough edges. No crickets were observed consumed and the frog became rather bloated, which was highly noticeable by day 5. The bloat did not seem to be of major concern as there was no definite signs/evidence of liquid or air retention. Similar the Frogs 6 and 5, Frog 8 buried itself into the moss and was sluggish in movements (i.e. slow to react).

*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 (12/9/11): Frog found hidden under the moss before the experiment began on the left side of terrarium. 11:00a-1:00p Report: Frog changed position through the course of the test, but not in direction of sound source (frog remained on left side of tank) No vocalizations. 10:00p-12:00p report: Frog remained hidden in moss and did not change location. No vocalizations. Note at about 11:30, stereo had a technical issue and stopped playing vocalizations for about 7 min.

•Day 6 (12/10/11): Frog remained hidden under the moss, not located. Light on for 10 hrs. 11:00a-1:00p Report: Stereo again had technical issue at about 12:20 and did not play vocalizations for 2 min. No phonotaxis observed. 10:00p-12:00a report: The frog was very bloated, but does not appear to be retaining liquid in the bloat. Did not give frog any crickets as there were already some contained within the terrarium and also did not want to risk impaction (in concern for reason behind the bloat). Frog located on left end and moved 1in. but not in direction of sound source. Remained visible throughout test.

•Day 7 (12/11/11): Frog was not visible for most of the day. Light on for 10 hrs. Given 1 cricket, not observed eaten. 11:00a-1:00p report: No movement observed throughout test. No noteworthy observations. 10:00p-12:00a report: Located frog before test began and was found on left side of tank. After test was complete frog was found on right side of terrarium in which the sound source was located. Possible phonotaxis.

What are my thoughts: Based on the observations thus far, it is somewhat safe to conclude that the conditions presented for Test A cause the frogs to think it’s time to hibernate. Behaviors displayed by all three frogs include: sluggishness (slow to react), burying in the moss/soil, and weight gain or bloat. However, it is hard to make this a definite conclusion, as a few observations pose challenges. I also would like to note that the bloat observed could be a sign (or behavior) in which Wood frogs display in the wild, upon preparing for hibernation, by storing up fat in preserves.

[LazyEyedFroggie]

Woah..... I have a lot of catching up to do I'm sorry I've missed so much! I don't quite have time to read through it all now though. I'll be replying more thoroughly as soon as I can! I'm looking forward to reading

[frogluver]

Rrrrr, I'm a week behind on this :P. Well, here is an update on the last frog (my smallest juvenile) I tested for Test A--Test B here I come !

Report for Frog 9, Test A

This experiment was run during the week of December 12 through the 18. During the first four days of the experiment, the frog was left to acclimate to the new conditions, specified as followed: 50-55F temperatures and approximately 50-70% humidity (it is important to note that over the course of this experiment, the temps and humidity occasionally went over the set range). The frog appeared to acclimate more smoothly than expected. The frog appeared to be a little stressed as no crickets were observed eaten. As observed with the other 3 frogs, this frog also became a little bloated. Behaviors observed include hiding in moss, slow reactions, and skittish behavior. When brought back into normal living conditions, the frog came back to its normal behaviors.

*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 (12/16/11): Before 11:00, frog was located on right side of terrarium. 11:00a-1:00p report: Some movement observed (and recorded on video) but not in direction of sound source. Movement appeared to be adjacent or even away from the direction of sound. 10:00p-12:00a report: Experiment was “accidently” started at a later time (10:54p). Stopped experiment at normal timing—12:00am. No movement observed. Light was on for approximately 10 hrs.

•Day 6 (12/17/11): Hid in the moss on the left side of the terrarium. 11:00a-12:00p report: No movement observed. Frog remained hidden throughout whole trial. 10:00-12:00a report: No movement observed once again. Light was left on for about 11hrs.

•Day 7 (12/18/11): Located before experiment; was found hidden in moss on the right side of the terrarium. 11:00a-12:00p report: Video shows movement however, I'm unsure if this was phonotaxis, as the video does not quite capture movement towards sound. 10:00p-12:00a report: No movement observed; stayed hidden within the moss. Light on for 10.5 hrs.

What are my thoughts: The conclusions I made from the previously tested frog (Frog 8) hold true here:

Report for Frog 8, Test A........that the conditions presented for Test A cause the frogs to think it’s time to hibernate. Behaviors displayed by all three frogs include: sluggishness (slow to react), burying in the moss/soil, and weight gain or bloat. However, it is hard to make this a definite conclusion, as a few observations pose challenges. I also would like to note that the bloat observed could be a sign (or behavior) in which Wood frogs display in the wild, upon preparing for hibernation, by storing up fat in preserves.