The Great Bullfrog Zombie Apocalypse!

Ample make this bed.
Make this bed with awe;
In it wait till judgment break
Excellent and fair.

Be its mattress straight,
Be its pillow round;
Let no sunrise' yellow noise
Interrupt this ground.
- Emily Dickinson

It was another sunny, chilly, blustery March day, though not quite as windy as the day before. My husband and I were hiking at Bald Eagle State Park, when we stopped at the frog pond along the butterfly trail to check things out. I stepped up to take a picture of a tree and some reflections, and as I looked down into the water, I saw a strange sight.

In the water was the golden, sunlit body of a zombie bullfrog. It was a bullfrog, to be sure, but it was not moving at all. In fact, it seemed to be in a state of suspended animation, but not really floating, just lying there. And then I looked beside it: and saw another. And looked around: and spotted as many as EIGHT total bullfrogs, all in the same state!

I was, of course, alarmed by this sight. I did not know if the bullfrogs were alive or dead, or in some kind of trouble. But I did as I always do in nature. I did not touch them or interrupt them or interfere in any way. But I did take pictures and my husband and I were BOTH amazed. We have never seen such a thing.

When I got back to civilization and the Internet, of course, I looked it up, and I asked around. A friend who has a frog, Fred, who lives the Very Good Life, shared this link with me and I will share it with you: Lazarus of the Amphibian World.

I don't understand the mechanics of it, but the bottom line is that this is apparently part of the process of how bullfrogs hibernate! I was also a bit worried about the frogs, as they are clearly in a vulnerable state, and any raccoon walking by could quite easily nab a very tasty snack. Or two. Or eight.

Rest well and safely, my amphibians.
One of these sunny mornings,
excellent and fair,
you will awaken, and swim and hop and sing again!

My husband and I did have some giggles about the great bullfrog zombie apocalypse. Wouldn't you want to BE THERE the exact moment that all of those huge amphibians woke up and started moving around? Wouldn't that be cool to see? Just: wow!

The soundtrack song for this strange scene is the Hooters, with All You Zombies.