hinder legs bud, and are gradually developed, as seen in No. 9 ; the 

 fore legs are ere long produced in a similar manner. 



HATCHINGS. The tail begins now to diminish, as seen in No. 

 10, and is finally absorbed into the body and disappears. The 

 tadpole (which, for a time, is like a fish and breathing by 

 branchiae, or gills, and feeding on vegetable food of fishes) is now 

 a frog; breathes the air by true lungs, and betakes itself to the 

 land, where it pursues the avocations of its new and higher life, 

 whereas it before swam by means of a tail it now leaps, and as 

 before, it ate only roots and grass, it now becomes a hunter of 

 insects and worms. This, or a very similar process of reproduc- 

 tion, is common to all species of the family. The Rana Frogs form 

 the highest group of the Batrachian class. They are active crea- 

 tures, feeding on insects and worms. Those which live upon the 

 ground in the neighborhood of standing water, and pass a con- 

 siderable portion of their lives in the water, have their toes pointed, 

 and those of the hinder feet united, almost to the tips, by membrane. 



Food for Tadpoles. 



The spawn or egg takes from four to six weeks to hatch to 

 the shape of a tadpole, and the tadpole takes about four or five 

 months to hatch or change its shape from that of a tadpole to a 

 small frog, which is done as stated in previous paragraph. Frogs 

 are very prolific. One bunch of spawn, from large, well developed 

 frogs, and of five years of age or over, will produce or hatch over 

 one thousand tadpoles. But of course all of these will not be 

 raised to become small Frogs. But a great proportion of them can 

 be if properly cared for and you have the proper facilities. 



