Hinckley.] 88 [October 4, 



presence of the females, who were largely outnumbered by the 

 other sex, had evidently aroused a spirit of jealousy among them, 

 and each frog was intent on driving the others from the place. 

 This state of things lasted till, as if by common consent, all 

 became silent, and disappeared among the dead herbage under 

 water. 



The reflection of the dark pine trees growing on the opposite 

 shore, revealed clearly the bottom of the pond with its dead leaves 

 and brown weeds. Attached to the twigs of a dead birch tree 

 that had fallen in the water, were five bunches of frogs' eggs, 

 each one of which looked like a small quantity of No. 9 shot held 

 in a bluish jelly. The depth at which they were deposited varied, 

 but most of them were near the surface. Two separate masses 

 were laid, one above the other, on the same twig. 



Ice an inch thick formed over these eggs the night following, 

 and the next day no frogs were to be seen. Cold and snow con- 

 tinued several days, but as soon as the ice thawed and the water 

 reached a temperature of about 52°, the quacking was resumed 

 and nine more bunches of eggs w T ere laid. All the eggs were 

 within a space about a yard square. The 18th of the month the 

 temperature fell to 20° at night, and the next day found the pond 

 again partly frozen over. Flakes of ice were floating in the open 

 space and eight frogs, including males and females, were lying 

 dead in the water having perished evidently from cold and ex- 

 haustion. Five others w T ere floating about helplessly in a perpen- 

 dicular position, but revived on being brought into a warm room. 



For the month of March the mean temperature was 36.25. The 

 eggs appeared to undergo no change excepting that the albumin- 

 ous portion increased in size. Not until the twelfth of April did 

 the tadpoles make their escape from the outer membranous shell. 

 At first they collected on the upper surface of the jelly, where they 

 laid as if dead, excepting an occasional muscular contraction in 

 which the tadpole doubled against itself for an instant. 



All the eggs hatched at about the same time. Scattered 

 through the jelly portion, in some of the bunches, where a few 

 eggs evidently not fertilized. Only Branchipi and water-beetles 

 were seen moving about in the water w T hen the eggs w T ere laid, 

 but before they were hatched, leeches (Macrobdella decora) were 

 undulating to and fro. Having attached themselves to a bunch 



