Here are pictures of “Bad Tad”, our baby leopard bullfrog tadpole. Bullfrog eggs are laid starting in January through April, and again in late summer or early fall. The female bullfrog lays her egg masses in shallow water and they are attached to vegetation, bedrock, or gravel. The male rides on top of the female, grasping her with his forelimbs posterior to her forelimbs. The female bullfrog deposits her eggs in the water and the male simultaneously releases his sperm. The eggs hatch into tadpoles after 3 to 5 days. Then, the tadpoles take 3 to 9 months to metamorphose into frogs. Bad Tad’s egg was laid at the end of July, 2008, he hatched shortly thereafter, and he has already sprouted back legs. Bad Tad should metamorphose into a young frog by the beginning of winter this year.
