Frogs without water?

Ger Roe

I live in north east Wicklow in an estate built on an old sand and gravel quarry. The 'soil' drains like a sieve and while flower beds have been filled with actual soil, the bulk of the garden resembles the builders gravel bunker in Chadwicks if you dig just below the thin layer of grass.

The garden has 6ft brick wall all around, and has no running or still water source in it. Despite this, over the past 30 years that I have been living here, I have often seen frogs in the garden. Not many, but up to three at a time and some big, some small.

I hadn't seen any for a few years now, but last night while clearing out a dark damp area, a frog jumped out. It was good to see one again, but I have always wondered how they survive.

There is absolutely no open water source in the garden, or neighbouring gardens either and I have never seen frog spawn. The only conclusion I can come to is that they survive under cold damp vegetation.

Would it be unusual for this type of existence to be occurring for 30 years? I could understand frogs surviving in damp conditions for a while, but for that long, through all weather conditions and seasons?

I’m not 100% sure but I think frogs only actually spend a short time in water for breeding and live outside of water afterwards.

bobbysands81

Ger Roe wrote: »

I live in north east Wicklow in an estate built on an old sand and gravel quarry. The 'soil' drains like a sieve and while flower beds have been filled with actual soil, the bulk of the garden resembles the builders gravel bunker in Chadwicks if you dig just below the thin layer of grass.

The garden has 6ft brick wall all around, and has no running or still water source in it. Despite this, over the past 30 years that I have been living here, I have often seen frogs in the garden. Not many, but up to three at a time and some big, some small.

I hadn't seen any for a few years now, but last night while clearing out a dark damp area, a frog jumped out. It was good to see one again, but I have always wondered how they survive.

There is absolutely no open water source in the garden, or neighbouring gardens either and I have never seen frog spawn. The only conclusion I can come to is that they survive under cold damp vegetation.

Would it be unusual for this type of existence to be occurring for 30 years? I could understand frogs surviving in damp conditions for a while, but for that long, through all weather conditions and seasons?

Saw quite a large sized frog in my parents back garden a number of years ago in a housing estate on south side of Dublin. No water within a kilometre would have had to have jumped over numerous 5/6 foot walks to get there. Always presumed it must have fallen out of a bird’s mouth.