Frog Life Cycle PDF

# Frog Life Cycle ## Stage 1: Eggs Frogs start out as tiny eggs - during spring or summer, depending on the species, adult frogs lay hundreds or sometimes up to thousands of eggs. It is unlikely that all of the eggs will develop normally or survive. By having so many, frogs make sure that at least...

# Frog Life Cycle ## Stage 1: Eggs Frogs start out as tiny eggs - during spring or summer, depending on the species, adult frogs lay hundreds or sometimes up to thousands of eggs. It is unlikely that all of the eggs will develop normally or survive. By having so many, frogs make sure that at least some of their offspring will make it to adulthood. These eggs float on the top of the water in a clump together, and it is called *frogspawn*. The undeveloped frog grows within the egg, eating the yolk that's inside for food and nutrients. Eggs can take 1-3 weeks to hatch. ## Stage 2: Tadpole When the eggs finally hatch, a little fish-like organism called a *tadpole* comes out. They have gills, a mouth, and a long tail that helps them swim. Tadpoles spend their entire lives in water, and their main purpose is to eat, grow, and not get eaten! ## Stage 3: Froglet In this phase, the tadpole begins to change the way it looks. First the tadpole develops lungs - this will be important later, because adult frogs need lungs to breathe on land! Next, the tadpole grows two legs. The legs allow the baby frog to jump around, but it still uses its tail to swim in the water. At this point, we can consider the tadpole a *froglet*. ## Stage 4: Young Frog In this stage, the froglet grows two front legs and the tail shortens. The tail has nutrients stored in it, and it uses those nutrients to grow until the tail is reduced to a little stub. At this point, the froglet has transformed into a young, small frog. This is also the stage where the baby frog jumps out of the water for the first time. ## Stage 5: Adult Frog During this phase, the tail disappears completely and the frog continues to grow. This is also when the frog starts to eat insects with its sticky tongue instead of only eating plant materials. The frog will grow and mature for the next 2-4 years, until it eventually meets a mate and lays eggs again.