Re: Amphibian reproduction -Tadpoles blowing bubbles!

Posted on March 27, 2009 by Andrew Gray

Talking of foam nesting frogs, here is short clip of the foam nest of the large South American frog Leptodactylus stenodema also found in Ecuador. I was out there with Dr Morley Read trying to record the calls of the frogs and get some nice footage. We managed to catch the intermittent mating call of the male, which as you can hear is loud and rauchous. When these frogs breed they lay their eggs in the large foamy nest they make, usually under a large leaf , in a dry area that is about to be flooded by imminent rain. However, sometimes the frogs get it wrong and it may be several weeks before the rains come and the tadpoles are able to swim away. We found that in the mean time, the tadpoles appear to constantly blow bubbles in an effort to help maintain the nest. Apart from recording the call of the male frog, we were pleased to film this unusual tadpole behaviour for the first time.