I almost didn’t see this little froglet, who appeared to be less than two inches long. Judging from the stocky shape, color and absence of back ridges (“dorsolateral folds”), my guess is that this is a baby American bullfrog, a little female. (The eardrums on female bull frogs are about the size of their eyes; on males, they’re much larger.)
She’s in a typical bullfrog ambush position, waiting to catch passing prey with her sticky tongue. Assuming that she’s a bullfrog, she’ll gobble up any passing creature that will fit in her very big mouth, even if the prey is bigger than her head, which is stretchable. She’ll soon become 6 to 8 inches long and be able to jump at least 6 or 7 feet in one amazing bound.
The jumping record at the annual Calaveras County Fair & Jumping Frog Jubilee (named after Mark Twain’s amusing jumping frog story) reportedly is held by “Rosie the Ribeter.” And it’s legendary. Rosie launched herself from a sitting position and landed an incredible 21 feet and 5.75 inches away in 1986. (Images taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on May 16, 2926.)