A Surprise in the Classroom!

Fiona, our pipadae aquatic frog, laid eggs for the first time in five years this week!  It was such a surprise!

Eggs everywhere!  Even on the plastic plant!

I spoke with the company that I get my frogs from, and they said, don't get too excited (as if that was possible!), they are tricky to hatch.  She told me to separate the frogs from the eggs so they won't be tempted to eat the eggs (which look a lot like the food I feed them).  She also told me, if the eggs hatch, it's usually takes around 36-48 hours.  The first day, the eggs looked like a period.  The second day the eggs looks like a comma.

Will they hatch? 

On the third day....they hatched!  Around 100 little tadpoles are hanging out in the habitat.

Once the tadpole hatches, it hangs around for a bit before
exploring the habitat.

I was worried that over the weekend, the tadpoles wouldn't survive.  I was so amazed when I came in on Monday!  I had so many eyes looking up at me! They seem to be doing well and double in size every two days.

These tadpoles are especially interesting for the classes as their skin is transparent.
When they get big enough, you can even see the tadpoles heart!

Meet the Critters in Lower Science!

Lizzie, our Anole Lizard! By Rosie Kilian, 1-213

Lizzie is very still and very quiet.  She is always very camouflaged, she blends in the the leaves and vines.  She goes crazy when she sees a cricket! She is green every day, which means she is happy.  She has a little black eye and a long skinny body with a long flicky tail. Lizzie is very cute and seems sweet.  She enjoys children visiting and always comes out to say hi and greet you!

The Walking Sticks! By Claire Lee, 1-211

The walking sticks eat lettuce. They can camouflage in trees or logs. They are insects. They have long antenna, six legs and their body looks like a stick! Only baby walking sticks can grow back their legs. It is very hard to see the head, thorax and abdomen. They have lots of babies. They look exactly the same except they are smaller. The walking sticks move one leg at a time. They are a slow moving thing. Now you know all about walking sticks. See if you can find one!

Annie, the Red Eared Slider Turtle! By Kate Proujansky 1-211

Annie is a nice turtle. When I brought Annie home she was scared. She is cute and green. She has a shell. She has a hard shell. She hides in her shell when she is scared. She barely comes on her own deck. She only comes on it in the night. She likes rocks. She likes to eat fish. She likes her food. You feed her three times a week.

Hoppy, the Cuban Tree Frog! By Leo Sturm, 2-333

My brother is in the upper grades so he doesn't have this frog for science class. So this is why I took care of him at my house during vacation. This frog really, really, really likes to hide. If you spray water on him he'll move. That's what my brother did when he was in the water pool. I fed it crickets but I didn't see Hoppy eat. One time, Hoppy was hiding and made a noise that sounded like he just ate crickets.

 

Our Aquatic Frogs!  By Isabella Bermudez, 1-209

Water frogs are frogs that live in water.  A water frog's life cycle is like a frog's life but it happens in water.  Water frogs can't survive permanently out of water. They use their lungs to breathe air close to the water's surface. Some water frogs are kept as pets.  Water frogs can breathe under water very easily. Sometimes they will be very still.