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July 06, 2006 - Ponderings on pond lifeThe Su6"M13onderin 40 on uond life LAST WEEK BARBARA and I trav- eled with a group of fourth- graders to the Downs Farm Preserve. On that same day, in the afternoon, we joined a group of second - graders from Cu- tchogue East when they headed to a freshwater pond. This field trip to a pond would end their unit study of local water bodies. The pond was conveniently just a short walk from their school. No need for bus trans- portation here! FOCUS Barbara and I were to meet the ON group at 1:30. It wasn't long NATURE before we saw a long line of by Paul young enthu- Stoutenburgh siasts coming along toward the pond. Their teacher, dressed in a bright yellow vest, held up traffic with an official- looking "STOP" sign as the eager students crossed the busy highway. Long before they reached the edge of the pond, they were told how important it was to be quiet and walk slowly; otherwise they might frighten the wildlife that lives around the pond. As the students walked toward the pond, they could see the heads of turtles popping up; most likely they were painted turtles, our most common turtle. All of a sudden, the excitement couldn't be held back any longer. "Look! There's a mother and father — and look, babies, too!" A pair of resident Canada geese had built their nest way in back, away from people, but now they were coming out onto the lawn. The students settled down at the picnic tables and each was busy with assignments as the science co- rdinator went off to collect some S of the goose family that stayed around while the students worked on notebooks. specimens so the students could get a closer look at what was in and around the pond. She had brought along a special net she used to stalk the pond edge, looking for tadpoles, frogs, etc. As mentioned earlier, there were painted turtles in the pond, but they kept a good distance from the net and she was not able tc catch any to be seen close up. In the spring, when everything is quiet around the pond, the mother turtles come out of the water and dil holes in the warm, soft sand. Then they lay their eggs in the holes they made, cover them up and leave them eggs and, inside each, a babyjjjv le develops. In the fall the babies ik out of their shells and dig nselves out of the ground. They w immediately what direction 7 should io to reach the uond. tsuiirrogs are notorious for their appetite for almost any- thing that moves including smaller versions of their kind. V lnce tnere, tney ioox for tiny green ant material that they eat. Turtles don't have teeth but have tough, horny plates for gripping food. Tixrtles are cold - blooded, and that is why you often see them climb out of the cold water to bask in the warm sun. Later in the fall, the ba- bies and adults dig themselves into the mud at the bottom of the pond, where they wait for springtime, whet the water warms up and they once again start looking for bits of green vegetation. Later they eat a wide va- riety of tiny fish and aquatic insects — almost anything they can catch. While the students were busy writing up what they had seen big white bird flew into the far corner of the wetlands that extend to the north of the pond. The teacher knew what it was and promptly gave a short lesson on the "great egret." This bird and the great blue heron, which also visits the pond, are mainly interested in stalking tadpoles, frogs, etc. — all of which are on their menu. The class had learned how impor- tant these freshwater areas are to a large variety of wildlife, including opossums, deer and raccoons and many types of birds. The footprints seen in the soft mud around the pone were proof. We were amazed to see how well the students drew pictures of the pond and its inhabitants, in- cluding the family of geese, which staved around for them to observe. The high point was when the bullfrog slipped out of the teacher's hand and made a beeline for the pond. Screams of laughter and joy followed. Luck was on the teacher's side and the bullfrog was recaptured just before it was ready to jump into the pond. It was promptly put it in a big plastic jar, where all could get a close look at it. It was the prize attraction of the day. In some parts of the coup try bullfrogs are hunted and sold for frogs' legs; on many gourmet menus they are considered a delicacy. Like most toads and frogs, the bullfrogs lay their iellvlike mass of eggs in the still waters of the pond, leaving the warmth of the water to incubate them. As time passes, pol- liwogs develop and work their way Innnetite ut of their enclosure to become ree - swimming polliwogs. Unlike most frogs, the bullfrog polliwogs do ot develop into frogs the first year but winter over at the bottom of the pond. The following year they add or o their growth, becoming the largest polliwogs in the pond, some going to over three inches in length. Bullfrogs are the largest frogs (seven to eight inches) in North America and are very aggressive hunters. They're notorious for their for almost anything that moves, mcivamg smaner versions of their own kind. In some areas they have wiped out all the young native frogs, toads. etc. It's been reported that small fish, small snakes, birds, dragonflies and salamanders have fallen to the lightning grasp of this deadly hunter. There are interesting stories that reinforce the reputation of the bullfrog's appetite. One tale was about two small boys who went on a collecting trip at a pond near their home. They did very well, col- lecting two kinds of frogs and one big bullfrog, all of which they put in their covered pail. They didn't inspect their catch until the follow- ing morning, when, to their surprise, there was nothing but the bullfrog left in their collecting pail. Mr. Bull- frog had feasted on all the rest. The voice of the bullfrog is deep and resounding and is interpreted in many ways. Some say it sounds like "Be drowned," "Better go round," "Jug o'rum," or "More rum." Person- ally, it sounds to me like "Jug o'rum." So here in a pond near the school the students saw the largest frog in North America. They got to know some of its good points and some of its bad points. Knowing as much as we can about the creatures that live all around us helps us understand how nature works and what part we all t)lav in the scheme of things. Suffolk Times photos by Barbara Second -grade students on a field trip (left) get a close -up look at a bullfrog (right) before it is re- leased back to its watery environ- ment. It proved to be the main attraction of the day and caused much excitement when it slipped out of the teacher's hand and headed for the pond.