Amphibians at Ridgefield

Red-legged Frog

Birthday Present

A day before my birthday in 2002, I came across a bunch of frogs at the edge of a quiet channel alongside the Kiwa Trail. Most of them were either at the edge of the pond or in the pond itself, but this one actually hopped up onto the shore beside me while I was sitting there. I switched from my telephoto zoom to my macro lens and leaned over to take the picture.

It was a nice present, my previous experience with red-legged frogs was seeing one get eaten by a red-spotted garter snake (on the same trail but in a different location). This was a much more pleasant experience — especially for the frog — and I was thankful for the chance to spend so much time watching them as they moved around the pond. Unfortunately I’ve never seen them in such abundance since.

Red-legged frog sitting on a rock at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

Emerging

I had just started hiking the Kiwa Trail when I saw a bunch of red-legged frogs and the occasional bullfrog near the shore of a quiet channel of water. The frogs grew still when I walked up and sat down, but soon enough resumed their hopping to and fro, with some hopping quite close to me. This redleg had just hopped up out of the water and is still half-covered in duckweed.

I wanted to convey a sense of the frog emerging from the pond, so I placed it at the bottom of the frame as it sits on dry ground, with the majority of the frame dominated by the out-of-focus green of the duckweed-covered water and muck, emerging from one world into another. I especially like how the picture is divided into thirds, the top being the green water, the middle the muck that is half water and half mud, the bottom being solid ground.

Red-legged frog being eaten by a red-spotted garter snake at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

This was the very first time I ever saw a red-legged frog. Unfortunately for it, the only reason I saw it was because I heard a high-pitched distress call coming from the grasses. After looking around and not finding anything, I eventually spotted this common garter snake. And then I noticed it had caught the foot of the frog. In this picture, the snake has already started to swallow the frog’s body. I felt pretty bad for the frog, but it was fascinating seeing the snake unhinge its jaws and swallow the frog that was much larger than itself. I have since seen many more red-legged frogs, but our first meeting will always serve as a reminder that some of my favorite creatures eat some of my favorite creatures.

Pacific Treefrog

My Enemy Has Become My Friend

Ordinarily the tall green grasses that grow each year at Ridgefield are my enemy. As the spring progresses, the grasses get so tall that they block the view of many of the ponds around the auto tour. On this day, however, they became my friend.

As I walked the short trail to the observation blind, a nice couple saw my camera and pointed out a treefrog next to the path. It was clinging to a tall blade of grass amidst the other foliage. The frog was much more tolerant than other treefrogs I’ve seen at the refuge and I eased my tripod into place until I found a nice pleasing green background.

As other visitors came up the path, I passed on news of the frog as it had been passed to me, backing out my tripod so everyone could get a good look and take their own pictures. I ended up taking fewer pictures than I normally would have but even so ended up with a couple of my favorite pictures.

Pacific treefrog hidden in the grass at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

Framed

I was hiking on the Kiwa Trail and although I saw a lot of treefrogs, I had a difficult time photographing any of them. This frog was a little more cooperative than most, although a bit buried below a bunch of tall grass. I couldn’t get the original shot I wanted, so I used two out-of-focus blades of grass to frame the image.

Pacific treefrog sitting on a footbridge at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

Coming Out of the Woodwork

One spring as I crossed a long wooden footbridge on the Kiwa Trail, it literally seemed like frogs were coming out of the woodwork. The green ones were easy enough to spot at a glance but the brown ones required a closer look. The frogs often hid between the planks, just in case I was a hungry heron, but emerged when they felt safe.