The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-07-01

of croaking Edward Jesse SAYS he has,
and he would lead one to infer that the
sound Is produced by air passing down the
throat in a series of beads The vocal
gans differ in different species. and an &C
curate observer can tell you the kind of
frog by the sound it makes. The power of
croakng is a privilege of the males for
even if the females possess the organs they
are but little developed, and in many spe-
ces the females are entirely destitute of
vocal powers. In the green tree-frog and
the edible frog the males are provided
be protruded through assures at the cor
ners of the mouth. These pouches are
distended from the windpipe. and it has
analogous to the drone of the bagpipes.
The edible frog is called on the continent
of Europe the Dutch nightingale, in Eng
land the Cambridgeshire nightingale
The bull frog, whose boom is well
known. has different apparatus. Certain
~ and concave internally, and when the
entrance to the larynx is closed there is
dome over the windpipe which Cuvier COM
pared to kettledrum.
The sounds emitted of frogs are of vari-
Gus quality. Darwin found those of some
little tree frogs at Rio Janeiro sweet
that on the Amazon he heard three differ
ent sounds-a disagreeable, dismal croak
hammering on his anvil 1t is said, on good
authority, too, that there is species OF
Surinam with such disagreeable voice
and much of it, that when several are
croaking at the same time they drown the
orchestra in the theater of Paramaribo.
FROG LIFE IN GENERAL.
1t is we'll known that frogs hibernate,
like the bear, marmot, dormouse, etc. The
last named secrete a large amount Of fat
in their tissues in order that they may
keep UP their vitality by absorbing It..
Frogs also store up a yellow fatty sub
stance, not in the tissues Of the flesh, but
in the membrane which covers the intes-
tines.
Wehave all heard of the showers of frogs,
which are generally recorded as occurring
in the dull season" Credible Witnesses
(rather credulous) are ready to testify that
they saw them fall but 1 fear the cause
is far more prosaic than the agencies OF
whirlwinds and waterspouts as often
brought into operation for this purpose.
The young frogs emerge from their tadpole
state, seek the land, hide under stones,
clOds roots. in crevices and in cracks in
myriads. We do not see the little notified
brown things simply because we do not
look for them, but a heavy shower comes
and out they flock in thousands.
Frogs have long been regarded as weather
prophets. Virgil, in the Georges. gives
among other gnS of rain, The frogs
singing their old complaint in the mud
In Germany the green tree-frogs are com
monty used as indicators of weather being
kept for the purpose in tall glass jars with
wooden ladders. The steps of the ladders
are the degrees-the higher the frog climbs
the better the weather; if the creature
seeks the bottom, it is sure to rain.
Frogs are divided into true frogs and
tree-frogs. There is no nlistaking the latter
for the ends of their toes are expanded into
knobs or discs, supplied with sticky &C.
erection to aid in climbing foliage.
:. The common frog is not eaten. although
the northern temperate regions of both
hemisphere. 1t does not occur in Iceland
but Is not uncommon In Ireland, not hav-
ing been banished by the patron OF the
| the temperate regions of the Eastern hem
isphere, but not in America. Here its place
| is supplied by the marsh frog. The bull
| frog is also eaten here, its supposed power
| save 1t from the epicure. This last-name6
| is the largest existing species
Mr.. Russell Wallace discovered In BorneC
| a flying frog. He says: "On examining il
webbed to their very extremity, so thai
| when expanded they offered "a surface
much larger than that of the body. The
| forelegs were also bordered by a mem
brane and the body was capable of con
! were of very deep shining green color
| and the under surface and inner toes vel
| low, while the webs were black, rayeC
| with yellow. The body was about -four
| inches long, while the webs of each hind
| foot, when fully expanded, covered a sur
face of four square inches and the web:
OF all the feet together about twelve square
! inches. The extremities of the toes hav,
| dilated disks for adhesion, showing the
| creature to be true tree frog" 1t j:
probable, then, that this provision is mad,
| TO enable ii to make flying leaps from
branch TO branch and tree to tree.
| Natures Wonderland is at least in
| teresting as that which Alice found beyond
| the looking glass, and frogdom is not ont
| of its least marvellous realms.