Frogs welcome here

We have a silver banksia, a black she-oak, some swamp rush and some other clumping grass...all are indigenous to this specific area and all are frog friendly. The rocks provide some shelter from predators. Of course the centre piece is the soon to be bog itself..just waiting on the rains!

Back in the bog business...

Well it got a bit soggy out there for a while over winter and then we had a bit of a family disaster...but things are looking up so it's time to get back to the frog bog. Peter and I installed some aggie pipe around the perimeter due to the soggy issue, it's just a part of the garden that cops water from higher ground so we needed to do something.

Today I got some rocks and worked out exactly where the bog will be. I need to start digging soon, add sand, put in the liner, fix it down with the rocks and concrete, then start planting the grasses, shrubs and trees that frogs love in this area.

So this is where I'm up to...










Insert condescending chortle from Aaron here...[ ] and sarcastic remark about Stone Henge here...[ ]

Slow Progress

Peter and I (well Peter actually but I was there in my scully rups) installed the drain yesterday. The water flowed away beautifully but it is pooling exactly where the actually pond is going to installed. I'm happy about that. There is no sign of frogs breeding yet, just chatting each other up with their singing still. I believe August is when the action begins so I have to get the pond and bog in by then. I'm off to Bunnings tonight to price up a proper pond liner (will look elsewhere on the weekend as Bunnings is often pricier than the smaller nurseries). I'm thinking I'll just use concrete and pepples to create the bog part. I also need to get stones to vary the depth in the pond and make it safe.
Ally says she may donate a tree fern and there are a couple of native nurseries near by.
We still have our froggy friend chirping away in the garden and it sounds like a friend (hopefully a mate) may have joined him/her.
That's all for today

What Kind of Frog is Dee?

Red-eyed tree frogs come from the warm and humid rain forests of Costa Rica in Central America. Some believe that their red eyes are a form of protection called "startle coloration". These frogs are very mellow during the day, and tend to be active only at night, so if the frog is awakened in the daytime, as might happen if a predator chanced upon it despite its excellent day time camouflage, the eyes pop abruptly open, hopefully startling the predator. This species tends to do better in a community of other red eyed tree frogs.

What kind of Frog are you?

What Kind of Frog is Aaron?

Argentinian Horned frogs seem to have been designed for the sole purpose of eating as much as possible. They appear to consist of two main parts: a mouth and a stomach. This is probably where they got the nickname "PacMan". Their needs are fairly simple, a warm habitat in a simple plastic box or aquarium with some shallow water and a few rocks so that they can laze around all day suits them just fine. They don't mix well with other frogs, even in their own species, as they are just as likely to eat them.

What kind of Frog are you?

How freakishly accurate????

But we love our Pac Man frog.

xxx from Wendywoo & SarahBoo

What kind of frog is Sarah???

Poor Sarah took the test once and it told her she was a common toad (ahhh) so she took it again (in some circles we might call that cheating) and look what happened...



The largest toad found commonly in Europe, the Bufo Bufo species can grow up to 20cm in length with a rotund body. Active mostly at night, this toad will walk about slowly, sometimes making short jumps, in search of insects, worms and other invertebrates. This makes it of great help to farmers. At the end of autumn it buries itself in the soil where it remains until good weather arrives again.

What kind of Frog are you?

What Kind of Frog Is Wendy?

Also known as the Smiling Tree Frog or Dumpy Tree Frog due to the nature of its appearance, this frog is a very hardy creature and a favorite pet of amateur frog owners, although some pet owners complain that they are not active enough. These frogs love to eat, which can make them quite fat, hence their "dumpy" appearance. Unlike many frogs, these frogs do well with other frogs of their species and are fairly friendly. They like a warm and moderately humid habitat and eat larger insects like crickets, cockroaches, locusts, moths and beetles.

Too bad about the dumpy bit - but you can't argue with fate!

Frog Chorus

There was a stunning chorus of frog voices singing into the night yesterday. There is a very swampy area and a creek not too far from us. The dam that used to exist on this estate has been filled with land fill (unlike other estates where they are creating waterways and embracing existing natural features) and now has houses on top of it. Apart from the extra cost to the home owners with extra reinforcement of their houses this has meant that the frogs have had to move on. However, with all the land clearing leaving pot holes, tyre depressions and other places for rain to collect in, it seems that the frogs have made the best of a bad situation. I'm sure many will move to the waterways in the neighbouring estate but for now they are coping. I think the recent rains, especially after so little rain over the last number of years, may have also encouraged the frogs to breed more voraciously. I just hope that when the next stage goes in the frogs have time to move out before being hurt by all the heavy machinery. My other concern is the amount of rubbish that gets dumped around here and possible contamination of the water from vehicles and other construction techniques (such as the run off when they acid wash bricks and driveways). At least we are surrounded by fully constructed homes so our little piece of froggy heaven should be relatively safe. I just hope that they have enough habitat recreated by the next estate to cope with the habitat loss here.

Planning stage...still

We purchased a drain on the weekend and Peter found where the storm water runs...I was very close where I was digging and would have almost got there except it's under the path. However, with the doors, the dinner party and the rain we didn't have time to install it. That's ok though as I have been busy in other ways.

I've done some more research and found that where we live once "supported riparian plains, grassy woodland and swamp scrub". This is good news as it means there are lots of swampy plants that are indigenous to the area for my frogs to enjoy. So I found a list of native plants and have highlighted a few for the frog bog. There are some indigenous nurseries nearby so after payday after next I will have a look for some swamp wallaby grass (pictured), tall spike-sedge, pale-leaf rush and common bog-rush. Apparently they are all loved by frogs!

Speaking of frogs our amphibious friend was outside the laundry this morning - I think asking about how his/her new home is progressing - Sarah and I were very excited to hear that lovely melodious chirp. We have tried to identify the frog using the sounds on http://www.frogs.org.au/frogwatch/ . It's lots of fun but so far we haven't agreed on which is our friend.

Location location

This is the site of our future frog bog. As you can see it's not much to look at right now, in fact this is where we just dumped stuff like Peter's trailer. Water is pooling here, not quite as badly as it looks in this shot. This is partly because the ground has been compacted down for so long and not been turned over (I've noticed that where it has been turned over the water is draining through nicely) and partly because the concrete path is blocking the natural flow of water away from here. The rest of the garden drains really well as we have mulched it and turned the soil over, also I don't think it received all the pressure this area did from building equipment and so forth.

I need to do more work on the front garden so the bog is hold for a little while. This is a shame as there is evidence of frogs breeding in the paddocks nearby where there are lots of puddles and ponds. Hopefully they won't have given up by the time we're ready - I don't know much about their breeding cycles.

We're starting a frog bog blog

We have a great patch of dirt around the side of the house surrounded by a concrete path and the washing line. It has a tendency to retain a little water and this has attracted a visitor of the amphibious variety. So with this in mind Sarah and Wendy have decided to create a frog bog so that lots more of his or her froggy friends can come and stay.

Having done some research it is actually illegal to collect frog spawn or tadpoles. However, frogs are known to travel long distances and seeing as all the houses being built around here will be taking the frogs' natural habitat, a lovely custom built frog bog should soon be on every local frogs must see list.

Our first step on the frog bog journey was to do some research into the construction and types of plants we need. Frogs need some shades so we'll put a couple of tree ferns in. They also like some long grasses around the bog and some water plants in the pond. They need a pond area to practice swimming in and a boggy area as well. Places to hide such as rocks, logs or even old tiles will also be welcome. We also need to get the some protection against our dog (frog v dog not good) so perhaps a short brush border.

Our next step will be to start preparing the area. Wendy has removed the junk that was stored there and has hand weeded the area - no chemicals for our frogs! We think we might put an extra drain in, just in case it starts to overflow - that way frog spawn shouldn't end up across the path and drying out when the rain stops.

It will be a slow progress but we're up to the task.

Bye for now.

Wendy & Sarah