Tadpole with no legs

[RogerMcAllen]

I bought a tadpole at the end of may, and a second 2 weeks later. The second one quickly finished growing legs and hoped away as a frog. The first one is still without legs. Any ideas as to why?

Depends on the type of frog. Bullfrog tadpoles take 2 years to grow into frogs (I think), most others take 1 summer or less. I usually get a bunch of leopard frog tadpoles, but none this year.

[William]

Whats the point of getting tadpoles if they hop away at the end of the summer?

[oscarbreeder]

Because then you have done your deed.
You have raised a tiny tadpole into a wonderful new frog.
Then it is time to start over.
I used to do this all the time as a kid.

[RogerMcAllen]

Mine have returned. At the end of this year I had 3 of 3 frogs , one for each year of the pond.

[AngelFishFan]

Originally Posted by corvuscorax

Depends on the type of frog. Bullfrog tadpoles take 2 years to grow into frogs (I think), most others take 1 summer or less. I usually get a bunch of leopard frog tadpoles, but none this year.

Actually, there is no pre-determined growth time. The instinct of the tadpole, is if they have enough food, they will stay tadpoles infinitely. If they have no food supply, they must begin their transformation, in order to allow them to get food from other sources. Just a little FYI.

Actually, there is no pre-determined growth time. The instinct of the tadpole, is if they have enough food, they will stay tadpoles infinitely. If they have no food supply, they must begin their transformation, in order to allow them to get food from other sources. Just a little FYI

Not challenging you or anything, but do you have a link to this info? I've never heard such a thing. I mean, tadpoles cannot reproduce, they have to grow into frogs first, and reproduction is key to the survival of any species. Also, I fed my tree frog tadpoles last year, and they all grew up and hopped away in a month or two, and that was with plenty of food.

[AngelFishFan]

I have been trained by a pond expert doing this for close to 40 years, and I myself have been doing this for 6 years. I honestly have not looked for links, but I will surely look for you. And I dont mind the questioning at all. Actually, I love people who think and ask questions. Ill get back to ya.

Originally Posted by AngelFishFan

I have been trained by a pond expert doing this for close to 40 years, and I myself have been doing this for 6 years. I honestly have not looked for links, but I will surely look for you. And I dont mind the questioning at all. Actually, I love people who think and ask questions. Ill get back to ya.

Excellent!

Glad to have another experienced "ponder" on board. I alway like to learn new things, so the froggy info will be cool, no matter what the answer is.

[AngelFishFan]

I love ponds. Period. End of story. LOL Im obsessed with them.

[Tadpoledragon]

I Have a Bullfrog tadpole and he has legs but he is in a fish tank. but if you put a tadpole in a pond it may take 2 years for it to become a frog. Because of the winter and stuff. If you put them in a tank they will grow 2 a frog with in 5 months. sometimes when you buy a Tadpole they could be older than one another. So that may be the reason.

[Toirtis]

Originally Posted by oscarbreeder

Because then you have done your deed.
You have raised a tiny tadpole into a wonderful new frog.

Just so long as it is a native species.

[frog girl]

I have worked with tads extensively doing research & when raising big batches there are always a few that fail to metamorphose. Since the thyroid gland is responsible for metamorphosis it is either a defect in their thyroid or pituitary (which can be caused by exposure to a toxin) or it can be a complete lack of iodine in their environment which is one basic element required to produce thyroxin (thyroid hormone). I think some animals like some seedlings are just not quite up to the challenge (natural selection at work again).

The other thing that affects metamorphosis rate is temperature, food availability, & crowding. Larger tads actually secrete a substance that inhibits growth of the smaller ones in some species. Of course corvus is right that some species overwinter once or even twice before metamorphosis.

Anyway probably more than you wanted to know.

A 20 month thread, excellent!

Of course corvus is right that some species overwinter once or even twice before metamorphosis.

Thanks Frog Girl, I knew I was right all along! hehehehehehehheeee

[RogerMcAllen]

Darn, with a complete answer perhaps this thread will stop comming back to life every few months.

[frog girl]

Sorry folks didn't mean to kill the thread

We pond folk must just have long threads cause we spend so much time outside enjoying or working on our ponds. Gotta love the sunshine .

[RogerMcAllen]

Perhaps we can stlightly adjust the topic. How about the amazing healing power of frogs? I was out driving and saw a bullfrog in the road that I thought would be perfect for my pond. I walked out, and put him into the back of my car. I didn't really make anything of the fact that he didn't try to run, I figured it was dark and he couldn't see me. When I got home I put him next to the pond, also dark, and left him till morning. When I looked in the morning, I saw the frog in the same spot, apparently he had been hit by a car, and his back legs had actually torn out through his skin. He didn't move for a bit, and within a day or so he had made his way into a shallow spot on top of a rock in the pond. The area seamed to heal over, and he became very swolen for a week. After that he was perfectly happy, and so was I. At least I was until I found out what a jerk he was. He would chase the smaller frogs away, and I even think he at my sister's betta. It was an uncared for fish I released into my pond (you can search somewhere for pics of a betta swimming in the deep end of a 4' pond busting the myth of bettas can't handle large aquariums and should be kept in jars). The betta never seemed to realize the frog was not a rock, and between his legs was not in fact the great cave he thought it was. I can only assume that one day the frog thought, "Hey, bright blue meal right in front of my face, I should probably eat that".

[frog girl]

If reptiles & amphibians are kept at an appropriate body temperature (given a range where they can thermoregulate) they have amazing powers to heal. Even when the intestine has been compromised & they should die of an infected body cavity they seem to heal. I have never had a frog heal from a compound fracture though. Very impressive. I did find a garter snake once that looked like it had been cut in half & glued back together slightly askew. It was happily wriggling & trying to escape.

Road cruising during a rainstorm is one of the best ways to find frogs (unfortunately other people seem to regard them as targets ).

Yes bullfrogs are evil (should not really be anywhere west of the mississippi river). They will eat fish, snakes, other frogs, & even baby ducks. I accidentally released some tads in my pond last year (thought it was a different species) & have been fishing them out for garter snake snacks ever since. Guess I have one more year before I have to go frog hunting. The best way to hunt for frogs is with a headlamp. You can see their eyeshine & the light seems to paralyze them. Just don't let them out of the spotlight or they are gone.

Bettas had to come from somewhere right? Somehow I just don't think it was jars.

[Toirtis]

Originally Posted by frog girl

If reptiles & amphibians are kept at an appropriate body temperature (given a range where they can thermoregulate) they have amazing powers to heal.

Amphibians far greater than reptiles, and particularly Caudates.

Yes bullfrogs are evil (should not really be anywhere west of the mississippi river). They will eat fish, snakes, other frogs, & even baby ducks.

We actually had a substantiated incidence on the BC west-coast in which a particularly large specimen made a fair attempt on a smallish housecat.

[frog girl]

No way Toirtis 8O .

A housecat (kitten maybe)?? That is incredible. Did it make it into the local paper?? & if so do you have a reference because it would be great to use in the invasive species class that I help with.