rescued frog eggs

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Tiffany Beachy and Lee Bryant point to frog eggs in 
swallow dry depression that had once held water

Letting nature take its course is not always an easy thing to do. 

Especially when you find a mass of frog eggs drying out in the sun. The temporary vernal pool their mother had chosen had dried up and with no rain in the forecast, the eggs would have dried out soon as well.

Wood frog (Rana sylvatica)

So you ask yourself, "Do I leave them alone and let nature take it course? Or do I try to move them to a nearby pool of water that might last long enough for them to hatch."

Luckily, one of us had an empty Ziploc bag, so we relocated as many as it would hold to a wetter locale downslope.

Due to the size and location of the eggs and the coolness of the season at that high elevation, I suspected they were the eggs of a wood frog. But that's only an educated guess.

The species is noted for being an upland forest-dwelling amphibian that breeds primarily in ephemeral, freshwater wetlands and woodland vernal pools. They are also noted for being long-distance migrants.

Perhaps this one traveled a bit too far upslope. 

The moral of the story? Always carry an empty sandwich bag, you may need to save a couple hundred lives.

- Photos by Tiffany Beachy

The embryo tadpoles inside were still alive

Yet, another use for a Ziploc plastic bag.

Rescued eggs returned to water

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