Frogs at Friendship Bogs

[Jersey Jeff]

My son and I visited Friendship Bogs Saturday night and Sunday night to look for PB Tree Frogs and other herps.

On Saturday, we walked in the rain as a thunderstorm was exiting the area. To our backs (east) thunder rolled and lighting lit up the sky. Ahead of us (west) was a sunset over the bog.

We heard plenty of carpenter frogs and the occasional green frog amid the raindrops, but no elusive PBTF. My son shot this pic of a carpenter frog with his iPhone:

We walked back to our car. I started the car, we rolled down the windows, and suddenly, my son and I heard the familiar "honk" of the PBTF...only a few yards from our car!

We hung out for a bit and I recorded the call with my iPhone.

We visited the bog the next morning under stunning sunshine.

Around 8:30 p.m. Sunday night, my son and I drove back to the bog and we gawked under a sea of thousands of stars that these two city kids never see back home. We noticed that the number of Carpenter Frog calls appeared to increase exponentially compared to the rainy night before.

As one would expect, our PBTF was calling just a few short yards from our car. It appeared that he was joined by two additional members of Hyla andersonii. My son and I hi-fived each other and drove back to our campsite satisfied and ready for some s'mores.

 

[manumuskin]

There are several spots in and around Friendship loaded with PBTF.one bog will actually deafen you with carpenter frogs under the right conditions.On small bog I have heard six frog species going at once.

 

[NJChileHead]

That's really cool Jersey Jeff, I love the sound of a frog chorus, and it's great that your son loves to get out and experience it. Some of my fondest memories growing up were doing stuff like this.

 

[johnnyb]

Since this thread is about frogs and since we live in (just) the Pines: last night we were almost deafened by the ruckus from the wet retention pond across the road: 2 or more bullfrogs, zillion northern gray tree frogs, eastern spadefoot toads, green frogs.

 

[Ben Ruset]

This inspires me to try to visit Friendship at dusk.

 

[whippoorbill]

http://teegate.njpinebarrens.com/whippoorbill/Whippoorbill_2.zip

I suppose this link still works. If so, it provides a recording of Friendship frogs.

Edit: Okay, I checked the download. It still works. I should have packed up the recording gear forever after this symphony of frogs was captured. It's magic to my ears; doubt I'll ever top it. Friendship rocks.

 

[johnnyb]

Great recording! Amazing number of different species in one place. Many thanks for posting; sending copies to my kids in NJ.OK, and WA.

 

[NJChileHead]

PBTF's, peepers, carpenters, fowler's, leopards?

That is a great recording!! In what month was it recorded?

 

[whippoorbill]

PBTF's, peepers, carpenters, fowler's, leopards?

That is a great recording!! In what month was it recorded?

Early May, 2006, Mark. I'm not so sure all the characters in the small ponds where this recording was taken are still present. I was actually surprised to hear the carpenters during my recent replaying of the recording. I know recent visits there during breeding season have not produced a click or a clack; it has actually been so long I'd forgotten they were there. They're still nearby, the carpenters, especially in what we call the carpenter bog, but now separate from the pbtfs. (Years ago the carpenter bog was so full that the volume of their hammering drove us mad. Recent volumes have moderated; less frogs?) I have not heard Fowler's at the pbtf ponds in a while too and maybe a single leopard during a visit a couple of weeks back. It's hard to be scientific, though, as to who, where and why or why not when I rarely make it back to enjoy the crooning.

 

[NJChileHead]

It's a beautiful recording Bill, thanks for sharing.