Tadpole Water Slide
Spring days become longer, hotter.
Bullfrog stands guard while his tadpoles squirm through a crowded puddle, bumping bodies and breathing the last bit of oxygen.
For weeks, Bullfrog protected his tadpoles from perilous predators, all while their puddle home evaporated.
He fended off hungry herons, and the puddle shrank.
He fended off famished fish, and the puddle shrank.
He even fended off other ferocious frogs, and still, the puddle shrank.
Most frogs leave their eggs before they become tadpoles, but not Bullfrog. He cares for his tadpoles and the tadpoles of his neighbors. His instincts tell him to save them.
Positioning himself between puddle and pond, he smushes and pushes mud to create a narrow path–a tadpole water slide.
Slowly at first, then all at once, hundreds of tadpoles slip into the pond. Darting around, they replenish their oxygen and feast on water bugs making this pond their new home.
