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.