North Texas Star Storyteller & Rambler (Mineral Wells, Tex.), April 2005 Page: 31 of 36
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NORTH TEXAS STAR STORYTELLER & RAMBLER © 31
FROG, from page 30
in the dissecting pan, thus providing great entertainment for the class. The
teacher didn't share my enthusiasm or burgeoning knowledge of anatomy.
The bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) is a member of the true frog Family Ranidae
and is North America's largest frog species. Their generic name Rana is Latin for
frog and the species name catesbeiana honors the
English naturalist Mark Catesby (1683-1749) who
published a book on natural history in pre-revo-
lutionary North America. They're found
throughout most of Texas except the dry desert
country of west Texas and the High Plains. These
mostly aquatic frogs live in wetlands, lakes,
ponds, rivers, ditches or other wet places with
suitable habitat.
Skin coloration varies from light green, dark
olive to almost black with small or large indis-
tinct dark spots or blotches. There is barring on
the hind legs and the belly is white or yellowish.
Large bullfrogs measure up to 8 inches in length
and 12 to 18 inches with legs outstretched. Their
large external eardrums (tympanum) are locat-
ed just behind their eyes and are bigger than the
eye in males and the same size or smaller in
females. Their hind feet are extensively webbed
except for the last digit on the fourth toe, making them strong swimmers. The
throat is usually yellow on males and white on females.
A prominent skin ridge extends back from the rear of the eye around the back
of the tympanum and ends above the foreleg. The large mouth extends almost
half way around their broad flat head, enabling them to swallow relatively large
prey. Their sticky tongue is attached to the front of the mouth and is forked in
the back, allowing them to hold onto prey until swallowed.
Bullfrogs use the sit-and-wait strategy and will eat just about anything that
moves within their reach they can get a lip around. Their voracious appetite
includes small fish, insects, crayfish, worms, small birds and mammals, young
turtles, other frogs and snakes. In turn, they're eaten by birds, snakes, mammals
(raccoons and skunks) and us. A powerful leap with their strong legs often puts
them out of harm's way to live another day.
Fishermen often entice them to strike at lures or other brightly colored objects
for a date with the frying pan. Frog legs are considered a delicacy in some cir-
cles and renowned to taste "just like chicken" - personally, I think they taste
"just like frog legs!"
Bullfrogs are one of the first frogs to go into hibernation in the fall and last to
emerge in the spring. During the winter, bullfrogs and their tadpoles bury
themselves underwater in the mud and remain in a state of hibernation for
months at a time. Oxygen is exchanged through their skin so they don't have to
surface to breathe.
Beginning in the spring, the distinctive bellowing "brr-ummmm" or "jug-o'-
rummm" mating call of the males can be heard in the; evening. The internal
vocal sac is inflated while keeping the mouth and nostrils tightly closed. Air is
then squeezed back and forth between the lungs and mouth, producing their
signature music.
Males are solitary and intolerant of other bullfrogs in their territory; frog
fights and wrestling matches are not uncommon. On rainy nights, males will
often venture off cross-country in search of new sur-
roundings to see if it's "froggier" on the other side
of the fence.
A female bullfrog will select a mate to her liking
and then lay 10,000 to 20,000 eggs. The male grasps
the female with his forelegs around her body and
fertilizes the eggs as they are laid in a floating jelly-
like mass that attaches to underwater vegetation.
These hatch within several days as tadpoles (also
called pollywogs) with external gills and tails.
Tadpoles feed on tiny plants and animals they locate
in shallow water areas. Those few that survive will
eventually complete a two years or longer process
of metamorphosis into adults. In warmer climates,
metamorphosis can take much less time. Young
bullfrogs then require four to five years to reach sex-
ual maturity.
Bullfrogs have been introduced around the world
and are now commercially produced to satisfy the
market demand including imports into the United
States. There's a good chance the frog legs you eat down at your local eatery are
like everything else these days - "Made in China."
There is no telling how many times I've walked along the weedy shoreline of a
lake chunking bass lures only to have a bullfrog spring into mid-air right from
underfoot with a loud and unnerving "MEAP" and then disappear into the
depths of the pond. It's always a surprise, but one I'm glad to experience. I'd just
as soon they keep their legs - chicken tastes better anyway.
Until next time, I'll see you down the road and God Bless America!
@o£e,4'
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May, David. North Texas Star Storyteller & Rambler (Mineral Wells, Tex.), April 2005, newspaper, April 1, 2005; Mineral Wells, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1099298/m1/31/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting East Parker County Genealogy and Historical Society.