Pond of Frogs

 

Without jumping in to the politics of climate change, this winter and last have been unseasonably warm.  As the temperature warranted little more than a light jacket and my disposition would improve with some quiet outdoor time, I drove over to the nearby state park.  Usually I sit on a bench atop a hill, enjoy about twenty minutes looking over the retaining wall down the hill to mostly empty fields and a few trees, this time I opted for the alternate route.  It's purpose seems to be a starting point for hiking, but they also have an elementary nature center.  The display snake must have been at the vet or someplace other than its terrarium.  I sat for a while, looking out the big picture window toward three artificial pools.  They contained frogs.

I went outside, walked to the artificial ponds, and seated myself on the metal bench.  Lots of frogs.  Noisy frogs.  One a reddish orange, all others more gray than green.  They swam with frog-kicks.  Some hopped onto the rocks separating the pools, but only stayed on a rock momentarily before immersing in the next mini-pond.  Don't know if they have predators.  The Nature Center set up bird feeders around the pond, all seemingly untouched.  Didn't see any birds, just frogs.