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Bulletin 39
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30 March 2008
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Little Aliens!
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"A roaring lion kills no game.." - African proverb |
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| Just over three weeks ago I dipped my hand into a freezing cold pond and unceremoniously (and probably to the annoyance of the resident frog) extracted some of the jelly like mass of eggs. I carted all this back home to my waiting tanks, along with some snails and a fair amount of pond water (a bit smelly indoors but good for developing frogs). Within 24 hours the black dots had turned to little “commas” within 48 hours the first commas broke free of the actual jelly part of the egg, and within 4 – 5 days (of collecting the spawn) I had little tadpoles swimming around inspecting their new home (a very large aquarium, currently taking centre stage in my office. I have taken decided to document the different stages of development, up close.
Sadly I might not be able to complete this cycle this season, as I am off to Namibia again beginning of May for three weeks. Ticket prices with “Air Nam” were exceptionally good and I feel the desert calling me home again. I was hoping to venture into the Kalahari on this trip……in search of some big “Black Mane Lions” and the sea of red sand. Due to the spontaneity of this trip though, I am finding it difficult to secure accommodation in the Kalahari/Gemsbok NP or as it is also known the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. Whatever the outcome I will keep you all updated. Oh and for those of you wondering I have a release plan in place for the frogs as soon as they are big enough, this will be carried out whether I am here or not. All this will take place in the dark of night away from prying eyes. |
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Just a small section of the "black dot" stage. There is more spawn in the background pleasingly out of focus.
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Closer still! You can make out small bulges as the "commas" start to form.
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And here you have the "comma" shape!
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This is pretty much what the sibling view is like!
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And this is where things get interesting. They look like some strange alien life form. This is a close-up of the comma stage.
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| And this is the moment when they first break out of their protective bubble. They don't do much but wriggle furiously from time to time. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Classic Tadpole!
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| And here we have a tadpole and a water flea. This should give you an idea of the sizes. All images were taken using a 100 mm Macro and far too much additional extention to allow for comfortable photography. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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All Images, Content and Website are Copyright of Karl Andre Terblanche 2005-2008
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