Telling of mating frogs at Sizergh, proved irresistible and so I returned with a friend eager to see such a spectacle. The castle was beautifully reflected in the water where mallard chased each other. No sign of frogs and there seemed less frogspawn. Maybe mallard gobble it up.
Water trickles through pools in the rockery garden where we found frogspawn. Then on a gravel path we spied frogs before us. Two appeared, approached each other, went briefly into amplexus where the male grabs the female with his nuptial pads and hitches a ride.
Water trickles through pools in the rockery garden where we found frogspawn. Then on a gravel path we spied frogs before us. Two appeared, approached each other, went briefly into amplexus where the male grabs the female with his nuptial pads and hitches a ride.
Frog cryptic colouring is effective and they resemble dead leaves. Their prominent eyes and long hind legs are often the most visible feature. In this image sequence a frog appears alone, then two, then a confusing tangle of frog limbs hunched up close.
Good camouflage means that it's challenging to photograph them in amplexus and to show them clearly. Look for those prominent eyes, they're a striking feature.
Back at SIzergh cafe we contemplated our images as a sudden burst of hail hammered on the roof. We timed it well.
A BBC broadcast this week showed Sir David Attenborough presenting a programme on the bird's egg, 'the perfect thing.' He reflected that in his childhood he had collected birds' eggs. It was not then illegal. And no doubt he gathered frogspawn and took it home in jam jars, as the poet Seamus Heaney describes in his 'Death of a Naturalist.' Seeing a volunteer working in the Sizergh garden I asked about the timing of frogs mating, since they'd been active four days ago and the lake was now quiet. He'd been a scout leader and had noticed the decline in interest of children collecting frogspawn in the hope of watching tadpoles develop. He attributed the change to the advent of social media and to youngsters choosing 'the virtual world.' On their phones.
Over this week I swop tales of bringing home frogspawn in jam jars, hoping to witness the eggs morph into froglets.
Back at SIzergh cafe we contemplated our images as a sudden burst of hail hammered on the roof. We timed it well.
A BBC broadcast this week showed Sir David Attenborough presenting a programme on the bird's egg, 'the perfect thing.' He reflected that in his childhood he had collected birds' eggs. It was not then illegal. And no doubt he gathered frogspawn and took it home in jam jars, as the poet Seamus Heaney describes in his 'Death of a Naturalist.' Seeing a volunteer working in the Sizergh garden I asked about the timing of frogs mating, since they'd been active four days ago and the lake was now quiet. He'd been a scout leader and had noticed the decline in interest of children collecting frogspawn in the hope of watching tadpoles develop. He attributed the change to the advent of social media and to youngsters choosing 'the virtual world.' On their phones.
Over this week I swop tales of bringing home frogspawn in jam jars, hoping to witness the eggs morph into froglets.
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