If you are fortunate enough to live near a lake or swamp or marshy area you will find it is a case of “build it and they will come”. For those of us poor shmucks who aren’t you may have to introduce frogs to your backyard.
There are laws about keeping frogs in captivity. For instance you need a license to keep them enclosed. So you don’t want to go kidnapping frogs from foreign lands as this is quite illegal. Also they, quite possibly, will simply take off. Frogs have a favourite territory and if you take them from it they will attempt to find their way back. Very sad if that territory was 300km away! Also, we definitely do not want to be spreading the Frog Fungus by transporting froggies all over the continent.
The best way to get frogs to set up camp in your backyard is to introduce them as tadpoles. Now this can be quite problematical. Where, in this day and age, do you source tadpoles from?
One way is to keep an eye out at your local primary school. Classroom teachers are amazing sources of tadpoles. I think things like lizards, mice and tadpoles gravitate towards them! Neighbours and friends are another source as they may already have operational frog systems.
An above board, no nonsense and fantastic source, though, is the WA Museum Frogwatch Tadpole Register. This is a service run by the staff at the Museum of WA. You can email them with your contact details and your suburb and they will connect you with people in your area who have a surplus of tadpoles in their ponds. Their email address is frogwatch@museum.wa.gov.au.
Have a look at their site for more information. Go to www.museum.wa.gov.au/frogwatch, click on Learn about frogs, click on Tadpole Exchange Programme and then click on the word more at the bottom of that paragraph. It tells you all about the programme and how to be a part of it. There is a link there that allows you to email directly!
They are planning to upgrade their system in the future so that you can register on line for the Tadpole Exchange Programme, but as yet you have to email them to apply.
Good luck taddie hunting. Let me know how you get on.
Posted in Frog Ponds. Permalink for this post: permalink.
| 
Stumble It If you use use Del.icio.us, then add us in: 
Del.icio.us
Thank you for the info, I have been trying everything I know how to lure frogs in my back yard and will let you know how I may acquire tadpoles in Pendle Hill. 2146
Cheers
Hovert
Hi Hovert,
I live in Pendle Hill as well and I have tadpoles. I’ve had a family of frogs in my backyard for a number of years.
I’m not sure of the type but the fully grown ones range in size from 30mm to 50mm. They’re mainly brown on colour with quite an attractive two tone striped pattern. The males make a distinct clicking sound, almost like someone clicking their fingers from inside a bucket.
I was going to put the tadpoles from this season into Pendle Hill creek this coming weekend. Please let me know if you’re interested and the tadpoles are yours.
Cheers,
Phil
I converted my swimmingpool to a frogpond – circular 25 feet across- by hanging wire baskets over the edges filled with reeds etc. 5 years later I have a complete ecosystem and in the first year my garden was filled with motorbike frogs. Unfortunately I made the mistake of putting a couple of goldfish in the following year and though I still have frogs don’t see too many young ones. I’ve made two small ponds in the garden but haven’t had tadpoles to date.