# Frogs & Toads > Frogs >  Tadpole identification?

## Crystal6

I kinda doubt you guys can tell what kind it is from these horrible pictures but no point in not trying right? (Sorry they're so blurry. My camera is not good with water.)

I can narrow it down to either some kind of Woodfrog, Leopard Frog, or Spring Peeper based on location but, it would be very useful to know ahead of time which of the 3 it is.

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## Kurt

I am guessing spring peeper, possibly gray treefrog.

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## Crystal6

> I am guessing spring peeper, possibly gray treefrog.


Wait. Do we have Gray Treefrogs up in northern-Maine?

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## Kurt

In a word, no. You might want get your hands on Amphibians and Reptiles of New England by Degraaf and Rudis. http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...condition=used

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## Crystal6

> In a word, no. You might want get your hands on Amphibians and Reptiles of New England by Degraaf and Rudis. http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...condition=used


Thought so. *groan* I'd better start making plans on how to keep it from drowning then. (Mainly when it starts to go through metamorphosis but this will also be a problem for a cage set up later)

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## Kurt

If its a spring peeper, worry not. They're treefrogs. Wood frogs, leopard frogs, and the other Ranids are some what aquatic, so again no worries. Now if its an _Anaxyrus americanus_, which I don't think it is, there is a good chance of it drowning.

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## Crystal6

> If its a spring peeper, worry not. They're treefrogs. Wood frogs, leopard frogs, and the other Ranids are some what aquatic, so again no worries. Now if its an _Anaxyrus americanus_, which I don't think it is, there is a good chance of it drowning.


Last time I had spring peeper they drowned. (Which was actually originally how I found this forum. I was trying to figure out what was going on with my tadpoles.)

When I made a thread about it you guys suggested that I empty out most of the water so that it could touch the ground with it's feet easily. (I did that but it still ended up drowning.  :Frog Surprise: Apparently the line between too much water and not enough is a thin one...)

Edit: Here's the link to the topic I mentioned. http://www.frogforum.net/introductio...716-um-hi.html

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## HerpNwny14

It looks like a wood frog to me,def not a gray tree frog.....i just released a bunch of peeper tads and mine looked alot dif than that but theres a chance....check out this link it may help
http://www.trentu.ca/biology/berrill...ationTable.htm

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## Crystal6

> It looks like a wood frog to me,def not a gray tree frog.....i just released a bunch of peeper tads and mine looked alot dif than that but theres a chance....check out this link it may help
> http://www.trentu.ca/biology/berrill...ationTable.htm


 :Frog Surprise: ..... *bookmark* Wow I'm getting a lot of useful links off this site.

Now I'm like... 80% sure that's a spring peeper.

Only.. last time I tried to raise spring peepers from tadpoles they all either drowned or got eaten by each other. Unless those were simply not spring peepers? My picture is kind of unclear from last time but I'd say this one looks very similar to the last ones I raised. (easier to tell when he gets feet)

Hm... oh well. Guess I should just wait until he gets legs and then try not to let him drown just for the sake of trying. (I only have 1 so I don't have a lot of room for trial and error)

If for some reason I fail again I'm going to go ahead and conclude that spring peepers drown easily in a large aquarium full of water even if the aquarium is mostly emptied out and includes things to climb on.

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## Kurt

Thats an awesome page!

Crystal, what a lot of dart frog breeders/keepers do is put a tadpole in something like a small Tuperware/Rubbermaid/Zip-loc container with a little bit of water. When the tadpole begins to develope legs, they drain off some of the water and tilt it a little bit to form a little bit of a slope or beach. Often some sort of aquarium plant is used to help the froglet to climb out.

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## Crystal6

> Thats an awesome page!
> 
> Crystal, what a lot of dart frog breeders/keepers do is put a tadpole in something like a small Tuperware/Rubbermaid/Zip-loc container with a little bit of water. When the tadpole begins to develope legs, they drain off some of the water and tilt it a little bit to form a little bit of a slope or beach. Often some sort of aquarium plant is used to help the froglet to climb out.


 :Big Grin:  Ah. Domo arigato gozaimasu. (Thank you very much kind person.)

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## Kurt

You're welcome

"Domo arigato Mr Roboto domo domo"

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## Crystal6

> You're welcome
> 
> "Domo arigato Mr Roboto domo domo"


 :Big Grin:  Thanks again. But now I have 2 more questions.

First: For the aquarium plants you mentioned (to assist in him climbing out)... would frog moss be okay? (Zilla Premium Compressed Frog Moss 3.5 Ounce - 100009878)

Second... My tadpole has been doing something that kinda makes me paranoid. :Frown:  He sometimes lays or swims on his back.  (It scared the **** out of me to see him just kinda floating there like that but when I poked him with a spoon he started swimming frantically again for a few seconds before doing it again.) He still eats and swims every now and then but sometimes he does so upside down... (Which looks very odd.)



^ it looked something like that. Should I be worried? Or is this normal.

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## Crystal6

After observation I think it might actually have air in it's body. Because it keeps swimming around in little circles as though it's trying to dive but then it gets tired and takes little breaks back in the back-float position.

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## CrazyAirborne

i dont know where, but i just read something this week about how tadpoles do get bubbles inside them, and it can be a bad thing if they dont get it out. I also have some tads that Im trying to ID. but they are super small right now, Ive had them hatch from eggs.

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## Crystal6

> i dont know where, but i just read something this week about how tadpoles do get bubbles inside them, and it can be a bad thing if they dont get it out. I also have some tads that Im trying to ID. but they are super small right now, Ive had them hatch from eggs.


How do I get them out?

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## Kurt

The plants I am refering to are live Java moss and anacharis.

Every tadpole I have seen like this has died. Sorry.

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## Crystal6

> The plants I am refering to are live Java moss and anacharis.
> 
> Every tadpole I have seen like this has died. Sorry.


Aww.  :Frown:  Does this mean I am free to try crazy things like squeezing the air bubble out of him or should I just wait it out?

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## Kurt

That's up tp you.

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## Crystal6

*tries* Yeah that's not happening. He is way too squishy and slippery. (So I am afraid I will harm him and if I try to take my time he slips away)

I'll just put him in an upside down glass with some food stuck at the top so he can eat and maybe let it out on his own. (Wow I have bad luck with Spring Peepers.)

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## Deku

> If its a spring peeper, worry not. They're treefrogs. Wood frogs, leopard frogs, and the other Ranids are some what aquatic, so again no worries. Now if its an _Anaxyrus americanus_, which I don't think it is, there is a good chance of it drowning.


I can defenitely 100% say that  it does not look anything like a toad tadpole. Ussually toad tadpoles are dark brown or jet black. This looks like  atreefrog tadpole to me. I see a ton of them in this place I used to see alot of frogs. I used to catch them. But  I dont know how to get past the toadlet/froglet stage. xD

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## Crystal6

> I can defenitely 100% say that  it does not look anything like a toad tadpole. Ussually toad tadpoles are dark brown or jet black. This looks like  atreefrog tadpole to me. I see a ton of them in this place I used to see alot of frogs. I used to catch them. But  I dont know how to get past the toadlet/froglet stage. xD


Heh too late anyway. (R.I.P.)

Ah well. Ty for the heads up Kurt. *head bow*

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## Kurt

> Ah well. Ty for the heads up Kurt. *head bow*


You're welcome.

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## Bill B

Crystal, How did you find it? I looked desparately in a wetland where bunches of Sping Peeper were calling here in Michigan, but found none.  Are you warm to breed earlier there in Maine?  I think our season started about the second week in April

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## Crystal6

> Crystal, How did you find it? I looked desparately in a wetland where bunches of Sping Peeper were calling here in Michigan, but found none.  Are you warm to breed earlier there in Maine?  I think our season started about the second week in April


I didn't actually, someone gave it to me.

But I did find one in a ditch along a railroad track once. (Or more like... several eggs that led to hundreds of tadpoles...)

I'm not sure about the temperature. It seems like the second the snow is gone we have frogs up here. (I've also seen tadpoles in lakes and even deep* puddles.)

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## Bill B

> I didn't actually, someone gave it to me.
> 
> But I did find one in a ditch along a railroad track once. (Or more like... several eggs that led to hundreds of tadpoles...)
> 
> I'm not sure about the temperature. It seems like the second the snow is gone we have frogs up here. (I've also seen tadpoles in lakes and even deep* puddles.)


 When did your ponds lose their ice?  The peepers started calling almost immediately after around here, and that was early April.  They just stopped calling about a week or week and a half ago in that wetland where I looked.

Ask that person how he or she found them!

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## Iratus ranunculus

I have had tadpoles clear it on their own.  It is an internal infection called Dropsy, the best treatment is to clean up the tank water and if you want to risk skin damage treat with something like Fishcyline. If he is dead... at least you know for the future.  As for identification, the USGS has a comprehensive tadpole key.  I could ID him if I had pictures at a full dorsal, ventral, and profile shot.

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