How to Raise Frog Eggs and Have a Blast Doing It

Spring is here, and the world is coming alive again. As we embrace longer days, sunshine, and spring bulbs rising through the soil, this season is a perfect opportunity to help our kids connect with nature. This year, our little family is learning how to raise frog eggs, and we’re having a blast in the process.

Providing children with opportunities to interact with wild creatures in safe ways is one of the best ways to spark life-long interests in the natural world.

A frog egg project is a great place to start, and even the least savvy naturalist can pull this off.

I remember multiple frog egg projects throughout my elementary school years. Tanks, bowls, and clear glass containers filled with slimy black eggs sat on classroom windowsills for months.

The anticipation of dozens of pet frogs for the classroom was almost more than we could stand. Sadly, these projects seldom produced living frogs. What they did yield was excitement and enthusiasm in students who were otherwise more interested in kickball than science.

Attempting to nurture tiny eggs into tadpoles can stir the same passion in your children.

I know this because I am the proud mother of a two-year-old, a six-year-old, and two bullfrogs. We set the frogs free when autumn hit, but I’ll forever claim them as my own: a science experiment that actually succeeded. The best part of the experiment was the enthusiasm sparked in my children.

How to Raise Frog Eggs in 4 Simple Steps

1. Find the eggs.

To make this work, start by searching local ponds and swamps in early to mid-spring.

By the time the air is consistently in the upper 70’s, most of these little guys have either been eaten or turned into frogs and escaped.

The best places to look are bogs and swamps in woodlands. Even puddles on walking trails can hold frog eggs.

We most often find frog eggs in small ponds nestled among trees or around the edges of the local park ponds. Once you locate the eggs, collect a softball-sized specimen and place it in a clear container. Assure that you have at least four parts water to one part eggs.

2. Find the perfect spot for the tank.

An aquarium or large clear container in partial sunlight is ideal.

Our family raised our eggs on the deck. Too much sun will heat the water to an excessive temperature, and too little will prohibit growth.

It’s best to put the container outside to mimic the natural environment as much as possible. It’s also advantageous to leave the container open, allowing mosquitoes to lay eggs in the water. These eggs will serve as food.

3. Monitor the eggs daily.

The black dots in the center of the eggs will slowly begin to look like tadpoles. This can take four to eight weeks from the time of collection.

Once they start moving and break free from the egg sack, it’s important to feed them. We used a small amount of fish food and cooked lettuce. About a pinch per day was enough. Without food, the tadpoles will become carnivorous and begin to feed on each other.

4. Keep feeding and keep waiting.

The progression from tadpoles to frogs can take months.

Our bullfrog tadpoles took five months to mature into frogs.

The transformation was captivating. As promised, legs emerged from seemingly smooth skin and tails disappeared. As the tadpoles grew legs, we switched from fish food and lettuce to reptile food from the local pet store.

Once they had legs, it was important to put a floating log in the tank so the frogs could climb out of the water. When their gills give way to lungs, they need a way to get out of the water and rest.

We fed the frogs reptile food and enjoyed them for several months, at which point we set them free in the same pond where we had collected the eggs months earlier.

How to Raise Frog Eggs and Nature-Lovers

The project cultivated a deep interest in nature in both of our children. As soon as the weather broke this spring, I had to hold them back from jumping into the swamp in search of frog eggs.

We look forward to another year of raising tadpoles and watching them develop. This project is well worth the effort involved. For more ideas to get your family outside, click here for 10 free outdoor activities for when the walls close in.

Not only have we been learning how to raise frog eggs, but I’ve also been busy coming up with creative ways to get our family outside, and these activities have been life-giving for us all! I’ve put together a free toolkit filled with printable nature scavenger hunts, obstacle courses, treasure hunts, and much more, all for your family’s enjoyment. Click here, and I’ll send you this free resource: Hours of Outdoor Fun!