At the Firestone Center there are a fair number of gladiator frogs (Hypsiboas rosenbergi) but we don't really see them all that often. However, right now they are breeding and it is easy to spot the nests. On my day hike of the property I found a couple nests and visited them last night to see what was up.
These frogs scoop out a roughly to almost perfectly circular nest in the mud near the shore of ponds and marshes. This holds water even during periods without too much rain, such as now during the dry season, an odd time for frogs to decide to breed.
Here a male has called in a mate and they are in amplexus, which is the frog version of mating. The female will lay eggs with the male on top depositing sperm on them as they are laid. I took their picture and left them to go on about making more frogs.
These frogs scoop out a roughly to almost perfectly circular nest in the mud near the shore of ponds and marshes. This holds water even during periods without too much rain, such as now during the dry season, an odd time for frogs to decide to breed.
Here a male has called in a mate and they are in amplexus, which is the frog version of mating. The female will lay eggs with the male on top depositing sperm on them as they are laid. I took their picture and left them to go on about making more frogs.
Gladiator frogs in amplexus at the Firestone Center in Baru, Costa Rica
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