Amphibians and Solar Eclipses — What to Expect

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Green Tree Frogs are typically vocal during August and we may hear an increase in their breeding activity during the eclipse!
Very little is known about amphibians and their response to a solar eclipse. We may even expect such a short lapse in photoperiod to be largely ignored by amphibians. One of the few reports on the subject comes from data gathered during a solar eclipse in New England in 1932. Wheeler, et al (1935) documented a lot of activity, with species such as Spring Peepers, Grey Tree Frogs and American Toads temporarily behaving as if it were night.

We are encouraging our Metro Atlanta Amphibian Monitoring Program (maamp.us) participants to get out, if possible to their survey sites and record their observations during the eclipse. We would also encourage the entire Atlanta community to submit their observations of amphibians while they are out witnessing the event.

Did you hear an increase in frog calling? Was there an increase in activity? Did the frogs, toads and salamanders come out from hiding in your yard? Information like this is important for our study and we would love to hear from you.

You an submit your observations to maamp@amphibianfoundation.org, or go directly to our website: maamp.us

You can also submit audio recordings or pictures to the iNaturalist project page here: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/metro-atlanta-amphibian-monitoring-program

The shadow of the Moon first touches Georgia at 2:34 p.m. EDT and leaves the state at 2:40 p.m. EDT. The shadow of the Moon passes by quickly, at 1,800 miles per hour.

You can find the paper on solar eclipses with our other posted articles here: amphibianfoundation.org/docs


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