Dead frogs

debsdesign · #1 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 02:17 PM

Hi - Hope someone can help.
I've a very tiny frog pond which has housed frogs for quite a few years.

After this winter I found several dead 'dark grey, limp and slimey' frogs.
Today I found a very fat creamy yellow one, the body had a hard shell (like a crab), with a lot of gunge on the under belly.

Any ideas please.....

Deb London · #2 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 02:27 PM

Are you able to get a picture on here? It might help get to the cause of this.

debsdesign · #3 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 02:51 PM

Hi - Will do, soon as I recharge the camera!

Cheers

Littlesparrow · #4 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 03:09 PM

I lost several frogs in Cheshire when the temperatures were below zero for months and ice formed so thick you could stand on it. I changed the water using the water butt, having removed the dead frogs and have added more water plants. I now have at least one pair of frogs in the pond and two pairs in the garden. None of the pond hibernating frogs survived.

I'm not sure where you are in the country, but this has been a very hard cold winter for Northern areas. There are also some frog diseases about but I'm not sure of the symptoms.Was your frog that had a hard shell in a different part of the pond? under different conditions?

debsdesign · #5 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 04:32 PM

I live in Essex and yes the weather was freezing. I (carefully) broke the ice in the pond regularly. There are oxygenating plants in as well. I've taken some snaps of todays frog (not pleasant) and she/he has turned a darker colour since I fished it out about 5 hours ago (it was creamy yellow). It's a very tiny pond, just the size of a sink so not really any room for different conditions.

Kayleigh · #6 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 04:47 PM

I think this is bloat...

Bloating Disease is caused by a collection of fluid inside the frogs skin. It is an internal infection brought on by bacteria that allows the accumulation of fluid in the skin membranes. The infection does not allow this fluid to be released so the frog becomes bloated.

This condition is very stressfull to frogs so it must be treated early for best results. If housing multiple frogs together beware that the disease is highly contagious and potentially fatal. Some sort of an anti-bacterial agent will be needed to rid your frog of the infection. You can consult your local pet store or veternarian for the correct type to use. After the infection has been removed the bloating will slowly start to subside. It can take up to a few weeks until the size of the frog has completely returned to normal.

Make sure that even after the frog has been cured that you completely sanitize the habitat before reintroducing the frog into it. Otherwise you run the risk of having the frog become reinfected shortly after it is put back into the habitat.

This is info for pet frogs but its the same problem they get in the wild..

Also look here..

http://www.froglife.org/disease/identification.htm

Quote:

After the ice has melted, the dead frogs will float to the surface of the pond and will often appear bloated. It can take some time for the bodies to rise. Death of a few individuals through winterkill is a natural process and not a problem for the population, but some garden pond owners decide to reduce this cause of mortality. The best way to prevent winterkill is to place a ball in a pond before it freezes over and then remove it after the ice layer has formed. The hole that remains should allow gases to exit the pond. If the pond has already frozen over, place a bowl / pan of hot water on top of the ice until a hole has formed. In the longer term, removing excess decaying material from the base of your pond may help (but leave some material behind as it is a great habitat for many pond animals).

debsdesign · #7 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 05:05 PM

Many thanks for the info. I shall try to clean the pond. The frogs 'set up home' in various parts of the garden, I'm not sure where they originate from, so I hope, if it is an infection it doesn't get out of control.

Kayleigh · #8 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by debsdesign

Many thanks for the info. I shall try to clean the pond. The frogs 'set up home' in various parts of the garden, I'm not sure where they originate from, so I hope, if it is an infection it doesn't get out of control.

If you read the other bit it could equally and more likely to be a winter casualty..

Welcome to WAB..

lilyrose · #9 (**permalink**) 27-02-2011, 06:40 PM

Unfortuantely they don't always float - we had eight 'floaters' after the ice finally melted (I did melt a hole as soon as possible but there was 2' of snow on top of several inches of thick ice) but as the water cleared we saw, and removed, 12 more dead frogs from the bottom which I don't think would ever have floated, they were just rotting away. It has been a bad winter for frogs but from other threads some are trying to make up for the loss, although I've only got two pairs so far and no spawn - I usually have 40 pairs at least.