Frogs in Rocks.

Manawatu Herald, 2 May 1899, Page 2

Frogs in Rocks.

Mr F. Gibbons, of S-ourbridg* . >vriies on the extremely interesting qaeHtion of the life of frogs in ston^. '•I have often heard," says M Gibbons, " stories of frogs being tuind binbeldrid in rocka, and t tavp alw-iya been very scwptioa. ib,)ub their truth; but. I have jit lid an experience that seemn t how Bora • light on the qu Bti >n. X*> were si u king a shift in mr cIl v > k ng. f.ir gntfing cliy for tn tkiu ncamtic tiles, and had to g< t -trough some rock Th > ra n oima across frogs enib^ddfd aliv lu-rniQ. Th y wiv in pick- -

noles of about three inches dimmer, m I I hive p m-u ins >>f tbe^n domiciles 1 iikr> sm o:h *xx\ rmnd on the iosi'e. Ch' frog* were innoh tht« hsy won d have been in h< j n->rua fv „ n-v m fn chin a quarter fi -izß, and of a bright, yel-'ow colour. I'oh ro -k wan nbuut fifteen fnt-. b«->low tb j ground l^vel. Now I havr 4n id a tha thf> frogsare of quite recm production. 0/^r th^ pUcn wh« •»> ii" -h f w-ts .^unk there wa-» a po • •( w t r ia>t -ip intf, and 16 n > doubt <vin>ained tadp >1 -8, and I think ih y found thji>- way, when v^ry youn«<, I wo 'h<o «s»h th< fia J fi surea (<>f which thvM» were m-ioy) in the rock jntii rh. y "i htir f nad. or uiide, th '.ihunbfr- th y inh-ibnpd, though jow hyg> f i-id is a mystery. I uudersund thdb fiogj can imbibe

through their skins double their weight of water. It is net possible that they may abstract a small amount of nutriment from the organic matter contained in the water ? It is not also possible that they may excrete an acid from the skin that may have power of dissolving th? rock and so make the cavifcv? I have noticed th it there % 19 frequently a pool of water in quarries in the spring, when frogß spawn, and think that likely that th*t explain* the mystery belonging to the stories that are so universal about this subject. But, on the other hand, it is strange that we fnuud cast?, or fo3sil deposits, of old < holes of about the same size as previously mentioned, which seen to point to the idea of frogs hiving lived under similar circumstance a great number of years ago, the holes "eing gradually filled up when they died. I have broken one or two through, but could find no trace of anything resembling the skeleton of a frog.