keeping my head above water…

I don’t know why, but the pictures of the frogs with their head just poking up above the water are some of my favorites – especially when I can see the rest of him so well beneath the water. And the algae on the rocks helps with his camouflage so I feel less guilty about not being able to keep things more tidy for them. Algae is a never-ending challenge.

Tolerating your fellow frogs is important to pond tranquility.

This is Brave Frog and Cave frog hanging out pretty darn close. Most of the time when I spot the frogs they are all alone – no way to get anyone else in the photo. I was delighted to get a few shots like this one with two frogs in view and even better in this case they are both in focus (not easy and the depth of focus on this lens is shallow to say the least). Even here you see Brave Frog being brave and hanging out in the open, something he did much more than the others ever have.

I love my lily pad.

One morning there had been a lot of drama in the pond and the lily pads were all messed up. We have no idea whether it was a bird (herons around here) or a raccoon or something else, but something was definitely in the pond. Even better, we know they were unsatisfied because all fish and frogs were accounted for afterwards. Brave Frog took advantage of an overturned lily pad which of course made him stand out even more. I love the bubbles under his nose!

Improvised umbrella.

Probably Cave Frog (just based on him not skedaddling immediately – but again, the remaining three look pretty much like triplets) enjoying a bit of camouflage and shade from one of our bog plants. In fact, I’m dying for that plant to bloom already! It will have red trumpet-flowers that should attract hummingbirds, which would be fantastic.

Brave Frog again, not caring about the camera.

Take a look at yesterday’s Daily Frog. Go on. I’ll wait.

See? Same pose. I moved around him, reset tripod, aimed camera, focused… and he just didn’t care. I’m pretty sure this is when he got his name. I still miss having him around.

I’m sneaking up on you!

This is a relatively early photo of Brave Frog – before he got his name. I was doing my best not to startle him and still get pictures while he was fully out on the rock. Turned out, he didn’t care much about me and the camera.

waiting for the shade?

As the sun moves I wonder if Cave Frog (best guess) is expecting the plant to shade him more? Regardless, he looks very comfortable and the reflections of both plant (it’s a water iris) and frog are fantastic.

We miss you, Brave Frog

It’s clear Brave Frog has moved on. We’re sad because he was fun to look at and his coloring made him stand out (as a Leopard Frog). Still, frogs do move around and will go as far as a mile (so I’ve read) to a new body of water. Given there is a canal across the street from us, a house with a pond two streets over, and the whole Yakima river about half a mile away, he certainly had his choice of new digs. I hope he’s doing well. This doesn’t mean you won’t see more photos of him – as I still have a bunch!

Hanging out where the bugs are easy prey.

I’m pretty certain this is Cave Frog, but at this point Cave Frog, Uptown Frog, and Eyeballs all look a lot alike. Uptown apparently visits downtown sometimes, too. Nonetheless, it’s always nifty to see them in the lily pads. I guess “frog on a lily pad” is a cliché for a reason!