Hi. I'm new. Help.

[rockey2]

On July 3 I found eggs and new born tadpoles in my swimming pool. I put the eggs and tadpoles in buckets Most of the eggs hatched the next day. I have been feeding them goldfish food. A few days ago several of the tadpoles became baby frogs. I moved the tadpoles and the baby frogs to a 10 gallon tank with plenty of places for the frogs to get out of the water. I think they are green tree frogs. I have seen adults in my yard. I have too many tadpoles and frogs to keep. I would like to give them the best chance to survive. I have a lake behind my house. I live in Boca Raton, Florida. Should I release them near the lake?

[John]

Hi Rockey2. I commend you for being so responsible - most people would not give such things a second thought and it's refreshing to hear that you do. Yes, releasing them by the lake would be fine. I've seen American Green Treefrogs (Hyla cinerea) even breed in large water bodies so the lake side should not be an alien experience to them. I would suggest letting them go in the evening around dusk - not as hot and not as many predators around (birds are a big one for froglets).

Best of luck.

-John

[rockey2]

Hi John,

Thank you for answering. Now I have to figure out how to get the baby frogs out of the 10 gallon tank. They are climbing up the side of the tank trying to get out. Two jumped out when I took the top off to feed them. I caught them and put them back. So far I haven't seen the babies eat. If I can catch them i'll try moving them tonight.

Rockey

[John]

You have my sympathy - what you described is one of my nightmare tasks!

[Kurt]

Tell me about, my little red-eyes can go from being these cute little things to major pains in the butt in just a matter of seconds. Whenever I have to clean their cage, which I have to do more often than I like to, they all take off in different directions. I am not used to more than three treefrogs in one enclosure.

Any way, welcome aboard to Rockey.

[rockey2]

My baby frogs are grey with a yellow stripe on the side of the face. The stripe goes back to the shoulders. Does that sound like a green tree frog?

Rockey

[John]

The grey part is throwing me - green treefrogs are never grey. Can you take a photo? Also, in what state were they collected?

[rockey2]

The babies may be dark green or brown and I'm mistaking it for grey. They definitely are not bright green. I have seen several adult green frogs in my yard. One was in a palm tree. Last week four bright green frogs were on my glass doors in the middle of the night. I assumed they were green tree frogs. They make a quacking sound during the night. I'll try to get a picture of the babies tomorrow. I'm still trying to figure out how to get them out of the tank while keeping the tadpoles. Most of the babies have tails, although a few have lost their tails. I am in South Florida.

Rockey

[John]

I would say cinerea or gratiosa.

[adawinters]

Since you're having trouble getting the froglets out, I thought I would share the randome trap-and-release ideas that occured to me for a situation like this:

If I were in your position, I might try putting a large cardboard box over the top of the 10Gallon tank. Since treefrogs are aboreal (tree dwelling/climbing), they might want to explore in an upward direction, so you might be able to get a number of them in the box at once if you leave it on long enough. You could gently slide it upward, then slide the 10Gallon lid back into place, and then fold the box closed for transportation. Of course, I doubt it would catch all of them at once, and since the box would not be perfectly fitted to the tank, you might have a few escapees in the process. You would have to watch closely. (The more I think about this idea, the worse it seems. I could see dozens of froggies on the loose in no time.)

Have you thought about removing the tadpoles to a new enclosure, draining the water, and then moving the whole 10Gallon, froglets and all (but now lighter, as it is without water/tadpoles), to your release point?

Or you could try placing a small, plastic, pet carrier case with pinhead crickets inside of the terrestrial (land) portion of the enclosure. You could close it up as soon as you saw the frogs come and explore. You could probably trap at least a few a day that way.

None of these are foolproof, and I suppose they all depend on how comfortable you are with safely grabbing these little guys. The easiest way to release the treefroglets would be to catch them, by hand, one at a time, (wash your hands first, so you don't accidentally get something chemically on the little froggies), but if you're not comfortable handling them, then some kind of "trap" might be preferable.

I think that's it for the "silly-trapping-schemes" that I can devise at the moment. I'm sure others out there can think of some quicker and easier ways to move these little guys, without harming them or their tailed kin.

I hope that all goes well, and I hope that you get lots of beautiful pictures of the whole experience.

[rockey2]

Picture of my baby frogs. Are they green tree frogs?

[John]

Not a tree frog. It looks like a Pseudacris (a Chorus Frog) or a Ranid. The toes makes me think Pseudacris.

[rockey2]

Thanks. I am looking up the chorus frog. I am trying to find out if they are in South Florida. If I let them go do you think they will be able to find food? They are very small.

Rockey

[John]

There are many species of chorus frog and a few are in your part of Florida. Yes you can let them go but do it in the cool of the evening, somewhere with cover and away from homes and humans.

[rockey2]

There is not much around here that does not have homes or humans. I have a man made lake behind my house. I have seen some fish in the lake and a few turtles. I never see humans near the lake other then the lawn people who were just here a few days ago. It is mostly grass around the lake. I can try to take them somewhere else. I have a lot of frogs and lizards in my small yard. I could let a few go here but I'm afraid they'll drown in the swimming pool. Do they need to be near a lake or water?

[John]

Do they need to be near a lake or water?

No - dense vegetation is good too.

[rockey2]

Thanks. I'll try to find someplace with dense vegetation. I thought frogs had to be near water. I am going to post a picture of one of the tadpoles that looks bloated. It has not grown arms or legs yet. Please let me know if you think something is wrong. I have two like that.

[John]

It doesn't sound right - please post the photo(s).

[rockey2]

These are pictures of the tadpole that looks bloated.

[Kurt]

Do not release any tadpoles or froglets from this batch. Not yet at least. These tadpoles look to be infected. If you can seperate the bloated ones and watch them. An infection like this can be caused by unsanitary water conditions, so make sure that you keep the tank(s) clean. Hold on to the froglets for now to make sure they are healthy before releasing. You may also want to consult a vet.