LAURINBURG — Ribbit.
After Hurricane Florence, many in the county were plagued, and still are, by mosquitoes — but now another problem is taking over. Frogs.
The local explosion of frogs have led to multiple calls and several people coming to the Scotland County Cooperative Extension Office to inquire about the little hoppers, but there isn’t much anyone can do. The frogs and toad breed in wet places, so when the flooding took place After Sept. 14, the were given more places to breed.
The silver lining is the fact that the frogs also help take care of the bug population. So when an area gets hit with a lot of rain and standing water, the resulting proliferation of bugs gives frogs a smorgasbord.
It wasn’t just Hurricane Florence that brought all the jumping critters to people’s driveways. NC Wildlife Resources Commission Amphibian Conservationist Jeff Hall told The Charlotte Observer recently that the wave of toads and frogs hitting the area came after the heavy rains from June and July — however, the second explosion has come from toads who are using the puddles created by Hurricane Florence.
The frogs can go from being tadpoles to frogs in only two weeks.
“Making things even worse is the flooding,” Hall told The Charlotte Observer. “All these frogs are in search of dry ground, which is why they’re showing up in places they don’t normally go … I’ve heard of people stepping outside and frogs falling on their shoulder, freaking them out. Frogs love tiny cracks, so they get indoor seals.”
In Scotland County, Cooperative Extension Director Randy Wood said that, as of Wednesday, the local office had gotten three phone calls about the frogs and two people have walked into the office about them. But Wood says there isn’t really much to be done with the problem.
“The problem will solve itself; there’s no way there’s enough food for all of them,” Wood said. “I would say with a dry spell they would start dying off, but with more rain coming it may last longer.”
Wood pulled from what Hall told The Observer, as well stressing for people to turn off their porch lights since it will attract the frogs.
Porch and street lights attract bugs and moths, which in turn attract frogs. The frogs do not pose a threat and it’s best to just leave them be until the situation changes. But on the heels of Tropical Storm Michael, it may take a while yet.