The Hawaiian gazette., 1904-08-30
DEVELOPMENT
OF FROG EGGS

Any day IN the early spring we may
go out and gather scores of tadpoles
or "pollywogs" OF frogs and toads in
the nearest ditch, but it is seldom that
we stop for even a moment to ponder
on the wonder of this transformation.
| Would it not seem incredible to us if
we saw snake gradually change into
quadrhped, such as a dog; or if
sea turtle should rise from it's watery
home a fullwinged gull? Yet in reality
a tadpoles development is no whit
less wonderful.
A creature like fish-with gills,
on vegetable matter leaps upon the
land in the shape of a four-legged,
fesh-eating animal, with lungs but
no tail. The eggs of the ordinary frog
or toad are laid in the water, en-
veloped in ielly-like substance.
When the tiny polywogs escape they
are furnished with external gills,
which soon disappear, giving place to
internal ones. AS time goes on the
hind legs and later the front legs APP
pear the tail with its fin shrivels up,
lungs replace the gills, and out hops
the tiny frog on land, thereafter to
feed on insects instead of vegetation
In various parts of the world we
find many remarkable variations of
this development, some of which in
werdness and strangeness equal the
most imaginative fairy stories.
Mr.. Lydekker tells us that there is a
Japanese frog that lays it's eggs in
the muddy edges of rice fields just
above the water. Now If the eggs are
removed from the round mass in
which they lie and placed in water the
germ will be killed, but If left alone
they hatch and jelly, then becoming
more liquid. the first rain washes them
into the water, where they finish their
development. Other frogs make their
little boats of leaves. in which the
eggs are laid, and the "tads" hatch
later escaping through a hole in the
bottom of their boat.
Both male and female of a South
American tree frog help each other
roll small leaf into funnel shape,
and from this the tadpoles, after
Matching, are washed into the water.
Sometimes the leaf may happen to be
several inches from the water but the
little pollywogs do not give up hope
They have the power of wriggling or
Tipping themselves with their tails
some distance along the ground, and
many thus find a way into the fluid,
on reaching which their life at this
time depends.
One extreme case is that of a frog
of Brazil, which deposits its eggs in
banana leaves far from water, and
whose tadpoles pass through their en-
tire development in the mass of frothy
jelly which protects the eggs, the jelly
gradually decreasing in volume, so
that IL is probable that the little fell
lows feed upon 1t.
But we have not half exhausted the
wonders of tadpoles' lives. The Surf
nam toad is the best example of those
amphibians which personally care for
their eggs and tadpoles throughout
development. The male OF this frog
takes the eggs as they are laid and
fastens them by means OF a mucilagin-
Gus substance To the broad fiat back
OF the female. The skin gradually
thickens, and grows up about the
eggs until each Is shut In little box
of skin, Furnished with I'D, In these
cells the tadpolrs hatch In a little less
than three months ana here they md
sufficient nourlshnept 20 enable them
tn develop into adult frogs. when they
Push opon the lids api make their es-
care into tho world The females ~ a
south American frog hRNr "a pou,h on
ihp back iu which chile transformation
iAkrH place
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