I’d never seen a large frog in the wild before. Sure, I’d seen small Cricket frogs jumping through blades of grass, over mud mounds and under docks, but nothing to the extent of the two Pig Frogs (Rana grylio) caught last Tuesday. The second was significantly larger than the first although both were fascinating. With extremely large eyes, tympanums just as big, and fully webbed feet, the Pig frog was beautiful. It’s funny how you tend to start talking to these organisms as if they can understand you—kind of like the way you’d talk to your dog. I thought it was the cutest thing I’d ever seen and I’m sure it thought I was a large, overgrown idiot. While I am not sure of the sex, this particular Pig frog was adorned in speckling that covered the majority of the hindlimbs, making its way up the belly and onto the sides. It’s webbed feet were remarkable. The webbing was fully extended, obviously an adaptation for swimming. As I carried it through the woods to come exploring with me, its skin became so dry from lack of water that it felt sticky making it difficult to even pull my fingers away without fear of hurting it. This particular Pig frog was roughly a few inches long common amongst this species since most grow anywhere from 3 to 6 inches. They tend to live an aquatic lifestyle and can be found in lakes, streams, swamps, and marshes much like where they were found at the Wildlife Center. Their call distinguishes them from other frogs, an almost pig like grunt can be heard throughout the year.

(Samantha Reeves, Charleston SC)