Framingham Nature Blog - Nupsee Pond P1

I have been very exited lately to catch The First Amphibian Breeding Event or as the Mass Audubon Society calls it, "The Big night". Wood Frogs, Spring Peepers, and Spotted Salamanders migrate to the same vernal pools every year, triggered by the first warm rainy night after the pools fully thawed. Click the text to get some background information.

I have been anxious to see it after watching several YouTube videos of it, and making a disappointing trip to Nupsee Pond after every time it rained. The last check-in i did was on the 19th and revealed that it appeared lifeless and was still partially frozen over, but was melting. Mole salamanders live underground where it stays thawed all year, but Wood Frogs and Spring Peepers do not. They, instead will stay just under the leaf litter and can survive freezing temperatures because they use their piss as a biological antifreeze.

On the 25th, I checked in on the vernal pool after a 50 degree, rainy and foggy night. That school day, the same kind of weather had persisted except the rain had stopped temporarily, and the ground was now soaking wet. Amphibians are more active in wet weather because they do not need to worry about there moist skin evaporating.

I arrived on the 25th and started hearing an intense peeping that got louder and louder, the closer i got to Nupsee Pond. Spring Peepers and Wood Frogs work together to create a deafening battle over which males will reproduce that year. It was pretty cool. These are all the photos of the breeding amphibians.

Male Wood Frog

Ball Of Males Surrounding Female

The End Result. Very Nice!

Spotted Salamander Spermatophores

I only found one egg mass and I decided to bring it home with me. I put it in the Newt Nursery. I count exactly 20 black dots, which means 20 potential tadpoles and 20 potential Wood Frogs. I am going to use them as an experiment, as well as to help control the thick algae in the nursery. Unfortunately, most of the frogs had amazing reflexes and would dive underwater as soon as i got close enough to take a decent picture. The pictures above are the only pictures i got today. All 3 vernal pools were deafening.

Wood Frog Call: Click Here Spring Peeper Call: Click Here I will return on Sunday the 28th, after Friday night's storm. By this point, it had cooled down a lot and was much quieter. I found Spotted Salamander eggs, Wood Frog eggs, and overgrown sphagnum moss. I also saw a fairy shrimp but missed the opportunity.