If you look close, you can see tons of wood frog eggs just below the surface of the water. I should get a polarized filter for my camera...
Wood frog egg mass. This pond is going to be filled with tadpoles!
A bit bummed by the apparent lack of frogs (no Spring Peepers either), but right about then I stumbled upon what I'm pretty sure is a small Green frog, or maybe a Mink frog.
Young Green frog (Lithobates clamitans)? Mink Frog (Lithobates septentrilnalis)?
Not quite sure which one it is...
The markings on the back in the first picture make me think it's a Mink frog.
This guy was hiding submerged under a rotten log at the water's edge. Apparently, since Green frogs in this area are so dark (usually dark brown, not green), they "strongly resemble" the Mink frog. So who knows...
Found another pretty big crawfish. They don't build little mud chimneys like the ones down south. These guys just seem to burrow into the mud a few feet from shore. There doesn't seem to be enough of them to try catching some to eat.
And lastly, something besides aquatic critters for a change. There are some buds on the trees getting ready to burst, and a few of the saplings around the pond (alders maybe?) have begun to flower. In the hardwood forest up the hill, the leeks are growing like mad. I may just have to try making some leek soup this year.
Flowers on an alder(?) sapling. Hard to tell what kind of tree it is without leaves...
A carpet of leeks.
Trying for an artsy-fartsy photo.
Tippy-top of a black spruce sapling.
A lichen I haven't gotten around to identifying, growing on a rock.
Edit: I was wrong about the frogs. Just went out and they were still singing. I guess they're not as frantic as they were, but they're still out there. Also, found 9 spotted salamanders and spotted many more. Pictures tomorrow!
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