Today we fed the tadpoles. I learned how to keep them alive the hard way. At least now I know.
Back in November, when we first moved into the house, we collected tadpole eggs laid in rainwater in the pileta out back. I cut the top of a big plastic water jug and left them in fresh water. I read up on how to feed them and learned they can feed off the algae in the water.
What the internet didn't tell me on my searches is that there's generally not enough algae to feed ten tadpoles in a jug of well water.
So when our tadpoles started floating, I was surprised. Then I facebooked my friend Cory, a frog specialist and our neighbor in Bocas del Toro. She told me what to do.
Preparing Tadpole Food:
Take some greens. Lettuce. Spinach. Watercress, which seems to grow abundantly both in markets and wild here in Salta.
Boil it until the greens are very soft and dark. The water turns green too. Let it cool and drop it in the water.
That's it. So simple.
Hundreds, possibly thousands hatched from a recent batch laid in the the pileta, but we carried most of them to the San Lorenzo river nearby and set them free in the water. I felt bad at first, not knowing if they could live there, but when we found other frogs, I felt better.
About 20 remain. They are tiny, ant-sized and hungry.
Lila tells me she hears them scream out in tiny shrill voices. "We want spinach."
That, among other things, is what I did today.
Photo by Jake Wasdin
Oh god, them screaming "we want spinach"...Lila is quite the character. Do you have pics? I can't even remember what tadpoles look like anymore...
Posted by: Candice | February 25, 2010 at 02:54 PM
Haaa. Tadpoles! I think this is the first time I've read that word in over 5-6 years. I totally forgot they existed.
Wonderful story.
Posted by: Lola | February 26, 2010 at 10:37 AM
Right now they're too small and just look like dirt in the water. As they get bigger, I'll post some.
I have to say, though, when they get to the stage right before they grow legs, they are SO ugly.
Posted by: Leigh Shulman | February 26, 2010 at 12:20 PM
I know what you mean. I hadn't seen or thought of a tadpole in forever, until we suddenly had thousands right outside our door.
What's also funny is that I've been using the Spanish word for them (renacuajo) most of the time. When I went to write this post, it took a while before I could remember the English.
Posted by: Leigh Shulman | February 26, 2010 at 12:22 PM
This is the most fun story I've read in a while! I love the stuff you guys do!
Posted by: neha | March 02, 2010 at 11:40 AM
This is look cool when you are young but too dirty when you play a frog that now you are adult.
I have seen some people use to cook and eat frog and this can be considered as exotic food.
Posted by: Kids fitness | May 11, 2011 at 02:20 AM