Nature on our doorsteps: Froggy Facts

Mild weather in February brings a busy breeding time for frogs.

They begin their steady journey back to the ponds where they grew and developed from tadpoles.  Males will croak and call for female partners, resulting in clumps of jelly-like spawn.

Frogs are fascinating creatures.

It is believed that they evolved around the time of the Dinosaurs, over 250 million years ago. As they evolved, they became one of the first land animals to develop vocal cords. Male frogs make loud croaking sounds using pouches of stretchy skin under their jaws that fill with air.

A frog’s bulging eyes sit on the top of its head where they see almost all around itself without having to push its head too far out of the water.  Unusually, a frog’s eyes can see colour in the dark, something few other creatures can do.

These eyes also do something unusual when the frog is eating.

The muscles that control the frog’s jaws are located just behind the eye sockets. When these muscles move to work the jaws, this action causes the eyes to drop downwards into the mouth cavity and the eyelids close.

It is thought that this movement of the eyes helps to push food down the frog’s throat.

Frogs don’t drink water like other creatures do, they simply absorb it through their skin. They can also absorb oxygen through their skin when they are in the water.

They also do not have a rib cage, which allows them to squeeze through small spaces and swim faster through the water.

In Ireland we have just one frog species, the Common Frog, which is listed as an internationally important species.

It is protected under law, and it is an offence to move frog spawn or tadpoles from their breeding places.