THE NURSE FROG. 1 .V.t 



helplessly sprawling on the surface. On land, however, it displays wonderful activity, being 

 of an extremely lively nature, and making long and bold leaps in rapid succession, so that it 

 is not to be captured without considerable difficulty. 



The color of this species is rather variable, but is generally of a soft dove tint, on which 

 are placed several oblong marks of deep rich brown edged with golden-yellow. Below it is 

 silvery-white granulated with gray. It is a very little species, measuring only one inch and a 

 quarter when full-grown. 



Another species of this genus, the Senegal Land-Frog (Cystignathus senegalensis), 

 inhabits Southern Africa. 



It resides in burrows in the ground, and is tolerably quiet, except before rain or on a dull 

 day, when it begins to pipe, and continues its curious cry for several hours together. The 

 voice of this Frog is a sharp piping whistle several times repeated. Dr. A. Smith relates that 

 he was greatly jjuzzled on hearing this strange whistling sound, and made many a fruitless 

 search after the tttterer. At last one of the Hottentots showed him the animal in its burrow, 

 and after that time he was able to procure as many as were desired. 



The head and body of this species are short, puffy, and smooth, and the color is yellowish- 

 gray, with three longitudinal bands. Below, it is yellowish-white without auy mottlings. 

 Its length is about two inches. 



The pretty Painted Frog is a European species, being found in Greece, Sicily and 

 Sardinia. It has a rather vide range of locality, as it is not uncommon in Northern Africa, 

 along the banks of the Nile, and is tolerably plentiful along the shores of the Mediter- 

 ranean. 



It is fond of water, but seems careless whether it be salt or fresh, and is found indiffer- 

 ently in rivers, streams, lakes, and the saline morasses. The common esculent Frog possesses 

 similar habits, and the two species are often seen in company. The food of the Painted Frog 

 consists of insects, spiders, slugs, and snails, both terrestrial and aquatic. There is a 

 difference in the web of the toes in the sexes, those of the female being scarcely webbed at all, 

 while in the male the membrane extends to half their length. The thumb is quite rudi- 

 mentary, and its place is indicated by a small tubercular projection. 



The color and general aspect of the skin are extremely variable, the difference seeming to 

 be quite capricious, and not depending on sex or locality. The ground color is usually 

 yellowish -green or olive, decorated with spots and having several white longitudinal streaks. 

 In some specimens the skin is smooth, while in others it is covered with tubercles, and the 

 spots are seldom alike in two individuals, sometimes running together so as to form continuous 

 bands. The wdiite lines too are often partially, and sometimes wholly absent. In this species 

 the male does not possess any vocal sacs. 



The reader will remember that in the description of the Surinam Toad, on page 150, 

 mention was made of the curious manner in which the female carries her eggs upon her back 

 until they have passed through their preliminary stages of existence. A noteworthy analogy, 

 close in some respects, but failing singularly in others, is to be found in the Nurse Frog of 

 Europe {Alytes dbstetricans). 



In this species it is the male that undergoes the anxieties of watching over the young 

 offspring, his mate being comparatively free from that duty. 



When the egg :, about sixty in number, are laid, he takes possession of them, and fastens 

 them to his legs by means of a glutinous substance, and carries them about with him wherever 

 he goes. In process of time, the eggs swell, and become so transparent that the black eyes of 

 the future young are seen through their envelopes. Their careful parent then proceeds to 

 some spot where he can find still water, deposits them, and departs, rejoicing in his freedom. 

 The young soon burst their way through the envelopes in which they had been surrounded, 

 and swim off merrily. 



Except at sirch times, the Nurse Frog is seldom seen in the vicinity of water, and even at 



