How Many Were There?
Estimating the numbers of amphibians present can be a tricky task. Because populations of frogs and toads can fluctuate widely from year to year, it is only through long-term observation that we can determine if a population is increasing or decreasing. Even if you are not able to determine exact numbers it is useful to have some idea of approximate numbers and how those may change from year to year.
The first distinction is whether the animal was seen or heard. You would enter this information in the ‘Activity Descriptor’ field in your paper forms or BC Frogwatch online data entry site. However, if you are using the Wildlife Species Inventory site, you will enter this under the “Evidence”, sub-heading “Type” column whether you saw or heard an animal and under “Amount” you will enter: T - if no frogs are heard; L - if individuals can be counted, calls not overlapping; M - if some individuals can be counted, other calls overlapping; H - if there is a full chorus, calls continuous and overlapping, individuals not distinguishable.
If you saw tadpoles or other amphibian larvae, enter it under the Juvenile, Unknown Sex column but please make a note in the comments column what you saw because metamorphs and small juveniles will also be entered in this column and we will not be able to distinguish the two unless you tell us in the comments column. These general Wildlife forms are not made to handle the complex life-histories of amphibians.
If you come across amphibian eggs, and you can tell which species they belong to (this is very difficult), record the number of egg masses. If you are unsure about the identification, make a note in the comments column. If you are using the BC Frogwatch CMN data entry site, you can upload a photograph of the egg mass which will help us tremendously in verifying identification.
Photo © Heather Waye. No reproduction or distribution without permission.
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