Passport to Texas

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

Amphibians are a remarkably unique life form.

Texas State University Biologist Dr. Mike Forstner says if you’ve ever wondered about the love lives of amphibians, he can help.

Amphibian or amphibios is a two-stage life. Those dual lives reflect water and land. When we think about the mating process or the management of the toad we have to take both in account the water and the land. All frogs and toads call. They make a unique advertisement call.

You’ve probably heard male leopard frogs and bullfrogs [bullfrogs sfx] advertising their intentions and didn’t realize it. On the eastern edge of Central Texas, Forstner says there is an endangered species that really knows how to pitch woo. [Houston toad sfx]

… further into the forest in Bastrop, we begin to hear a high-pitched trills that lasts a long time, up to 15 seconds for the Houston toad.

All calls allow the females to hone in on potential mates.

And the females will hop toward the male call that they think is the most attractive. So there is female choice- not very different from what happened in the human world.

That’s our show…with research and writing help from Alanna Jones… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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CLICK HERE to go to a page where you can see images, and hear the songs, of Texas frogs and toads.
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