Amphibian din has residents hopping mad - via Herp Digest

Kelly Bell, February 7, 2015, 9:18 am

West Australian Regional

The Pilbara's frogs have been driving some residents to distraction.

The croaks of the Pilbara's frogs have created a stir on social media, yet again.

Residents in both Hedland and Newman took to community Facebook pages last week to find the best solution to quieten the noisy amphibians.

Following last week's storms, which resulted in plenty of rainfall in Newman, Anthony Ackland was surprised by the sudden appearance of frogs around his house.

"Okay, so this is supposed to be the desert right? Where did all the frogs come from?" he posted on one community page.

"Found some swimming in my pool, only little but man they can make a noise."

Fellow resident Michelle Missler said she had found hundreds of tadpoles when cleaning her horses' water trough.

In Hedland, one resident had spent three nights sleeping on the couch with her child because the little critters "just don't shut up".

She was sure the noise was "getting worse and worse".

Meanwhile, Steph Ould was hoping more frogs made their way to her property.

"The frogs are so nice though ... you'll never find them in order to relocate them, maybe (try) earplugs?" she commented.

"I wish there were more at my house, we only have one little fella here."

Mick Greenhalgh suggested people should be pleased by the "free alarm system", because when "they stop croaking, you know (someone) is in your yard".

One of the cheekier solutions for those being kept awake by the frogs' noise was to "try 40ml of tequila, a bit of salt and some lemon wedges, repeat this until the noise stops ... or fill your yard with olive pythons".

Department of Parks and Wildlife conservation officer for the Pilbara Alicia Whittington said although the usually dry environment of Newman and Hedland could appear unsuitable, a number of Australian frog species were skilled drought-dodgers and were well adapted to the region's semi-arid climate.

"Many of these species have amazing lifecycles, which includes burrowing into the soil to avoid heat and staying buried for months and sometimes even years, only emerging after a significant rainfall event," she said.

"With the recent rains, many are taking full advantage of the wet conditions."

Ms Whittington said residents would have heard a "cacophony of males calling" as the frogs rushed to find a mate and lay eggs while the wet remain

She said because of irregular rainfall events, species such as the desert spadefoot toad can complete tadpole development in about 30 days.