The other day I discovered that something had invaded my puddle. Tiny tadpoles filled it and they were everywhere.
I wasn’t sure what would become of my puddle.
Notice I said my puddle. I had to convince those tadpoles that it was still mine and they didn’t belong there.
So I watched those tadpoles every day and I tried to talk reason into them, but it wasn’t doing any good.
I kept hoping the tadpoles would be gone, but every day when I showed up to visit my puddle they were still there.
Nothing I did seemed to do any good.
Until one day when I went to visit my puddle I found a tadpole leaving it.
And the next day when I came back I found two of them out of the water.
Now to convince the rest of them.
This one seems a little confused. I don’t think it’s sure whether it’s a tadpole or a toad.
Come on buddy. You’re a toad. You’re a toad.
The next day I was really in luck. There were four little toadies hopping around on the rocks.
They even got stuck in a crack.
And today when I went back – well – there were still some tadpoles hanging out in my puddle.
But the rocks were alive with little tiny toadies!
How many toads can you see?
Click here to find more mischievous pets.
bongodogblog 
Mags Corner
August 5, 2013 at 11:29 am
We were wondering if you would get to witness the transformation of those tadpoles to toads sweet Bongo. Now they will probably hop away and stay out of YOUR puddle. Hugs and nose kisses
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 2:02 pm
Mag and Chancy, I wonder if I’ll run across any of them again once they turn into big toads.
marina kanavaki
August 5, 2013 at 11:30 am
That’s many toadies!!!! They grow really fast, don’t they?!!!!
🙂 Happy Monday Bongo!
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 2:05 pm
Thanks Marina. They really grew fast. My person read that most tadpoles take 6 to 8 weeks to change, but that some species who lay eggs in puddles change faster in order to survive before puddles dry out. These obviously are the puddle kind. And my puddle is close to disappearing again. I think those toadies are hiding it somewhere.
jaxart4animals
August 5, 2013 at 11:32 am
That is Really Cool! Thanks for sharing your adventure…
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 2:06 pm
Jackie, it was really exciting seeing those tadpoles become toadies.
jaxart4animals
August 6, 2013 at 11:04 am
And there’s Soooo many of them. I never seen so many toads in one place. 🙂
Bongo
August 6, 2013 at 2:57 pm
Jackie, I’ve never seen anything like this either. Toadies were hopping around everywhere. And I think some of the first toadies have probably already hopped off to somewhere else.
angelswhisper2011
August 5, 2013 at 11:55 am
OMC Bongo, that’s paradise.. at least for me.. What a cute transformation, maybe when you kiss them all, they’ll change into girldogs… 😉
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 2:07 pm
Little Binky, I’m going out to kiss some of them right now. There’s too many toadies out there, but I could sure use some more girlfriends.
Kuruk
August 5, 2013 at 1:14 pm
I think I see five toadies! Coooowoooowoooooool! Ku
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 2:09 pm
Ku, it looks like you spotted them all. And maybe even an extra one.
Viciously Sweet
August 5, 2013 at 1:21 pm
This made my day. So many cute toads… so much cute Bongo!
Thanks very much!
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 2:10 pm
Viciously Sweet, those toadies really are cute. Much cuter than when they were tadpoles. And they hop around everywhere.
Genevieve Petrillo
August 5, 2013 at 2:39 pm
I see a ton of those warty little guys. How fun to watch them grow and then watch them leave. I wonder if they’ll lay some eggs and leave them behind…. The circle of life and all….
Love and licks,
Cupcake
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 3:42 pm
Cupcake, it would be fun to see new tadpoles in my puddle again. This is the first time I’ve ever found them there. I’m hoping I see some of the little toadies after they grow up.
snoopys@snoopysdogblog
August 5, 2013 at 3:15 pm
How cool that you got to see the little tadpoles grow into toadies! That’s super fun and super cool!
Big wags
Your pal Snoopy 🙂
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 3:44 pm
Snoopy, it was a surprise to even find tadpoles in my puddle, but then to see them grow into toadies was really awesome.
Anonymous
August 5, 2013 at 4:23 pm
We only see 4 Toadies…isnt it pretty neat that they tadpoles turn into Toads… 🙂
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 6:02 pm
Alex, Trish, and Penny, that’s what I see is four. Unless there’s one hiding under a leaf somewhere. It was pretty amazing watching the transformation – and it happened really fast. Good thing it did because they all would have died in the dirt today. Most of them made it.
2browndawgs
August 5, 2013 at 6:08 pm
It is a good thing those tadpoles grew up before the puddle went away…lol.
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 7:17 pm
Brown Dawgs, they made it in the nick of time. I just checked and the puddle’s gone. I think maybe some coyotes helped it disappear extra quick, but most of the tadpoles made it out.
Kris, Neighbor Chick
August 5, 2013 at 8:29 pm
What a great science lesson for you, Bongo! What cutie-pie toads!! And a cutie-pie Bongo!
Bongo
August 5, 2013 at 10:38 pm
Thanks Kris. Those toads really are little cuties – especially when you see them hopping all over the place.
susank456
August 6, 2013 at 12:52 am
Great photos!
Bongo
August 6, 2013 at 2:42 pm
Thanks Susan.
Shakti Ghosal
August 6, 2013 at 1:36 am
Delightfully avoidable place if you ask me. Could it be that all that hiding below stones is occurring due to that heat?
Shakti
Bongo
August 6, 2013 at 2:49 pm
Shakti, those toads could be hiding from the heat. I think their natural inclination is to find a hole to hide in during the day. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
misswhiplash
August 6, 2013 at 1:46 am
That is called ‘Toad in the Hole’ and favourite English dish..(not made with toads but with sausages
Your person is very clever with her camera , catching those toadies at just the right time. I could not count how many there were but it looks like a lot….what a lovely fella you are letting those sweet little creatures come to life and to live in your puddle
Bongo
August 6, 2013 at 2:51 pm
Patrecia, those toadies didn’t give me any choice – they just moved into my puddle. But it was kind of cool watching them there. There were so many of them my person could hardly miss getting good pictures.
misswhiplash
August 6, 2013 at 1:49 am
there is a rumour that they always return to the water where they were born to breed again…watch out next year!!!
you could have hundreds of them or even thousands
Bongo
August 6, 2013 at 2:52 pm
Patrecia, I’ll be looking out for more toadies next year. This is the first year I’ve ever seen any.
eripanwkevin
August 6, 2013 at 5:52 am
Wow Bongo! These pictures are great! Especially the ones that the toad has till his tail…..very rare to look…I think that they are very heart warming pictures because they prove that those small tadpoles have grown safely to toads!!! I found four toads in the last picture! 🙂
Bongo
August 6, 2013 at 2:53 pm
Kevin, you scored. Four toads are in that picture. I was really happy those tadpoles made it to toads before the water disappeared. The water went so fast – I think it had some help from some of the night creatures around here.
FleaByte
August 6, 2013 at 8:35 am
*SQUEEEEE* Tiny toadies are the BEST!!! They’re adorable! And tiny!!! And super noisy!
Bongo
August 6, 2013 at 2:54 pm
FleaByte, I didn’t hear any of those toadies croaking. But they sure are cute hopping around all over the rocks by my puddle.
Dalton
August 7, 2013 at 1:08 am
It’s good to see the tadpoles pay more attention to what you say than your person!
Bongo
August 7, 2013 at 9:26 pm
Dalton, I can’t ever seem to get my person to listen to me. But yeah, those tadpoles finally did.
kolytyi
August 9, 2013 at 10:48 am
OMG, I hope those toadies do not metamorphose into some bigger creature tomorrow! They are really cute little beings!
Bongo
August 11, 2013 at 12:10 pm
Kolytyi, those toadies have already gotten a little plumper than when they first became toadies. I’m not sure how big they’re supposed to get.
colliesofthemeadow
August 11, 2013 at 1:01 pm
Hmmm… interesting and lovely if you are a human. If you are a dog like us I have to wonder if toads would be good as fricasee…. like squirrels! -Ginger
Bongo
August 11, 2013 at 1:06 pm
Ginger, I think we’d better stick to those pesky squirrels. My person says eating toadies can make you sick. Watch out squirrels. Here I come!