Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi... I posted in March about letting my Grey Tree Frog go that I found on our Hot Tub in October.

It is getting warmer now and the frogs are really croaking in the pond across the street. I know it is time I let him go, but I am beginning to worry about him surviving outside.

He has been with us 6 months now... used to getting 2 or 3 crickets every few days (some non-flying fruit flies for a treat).

So, here are some questions I have:

Where should I let him go - away from the house?

I know this is silly, but should I put his little hut and fake pond out there that he has gotten so used to?

Will he be okay in catching insects since they aren't right there anymore?

Should I let him go on a rainy day or bright sunny day?
Or should I let him go at night?

Sorry so many questions, but I want to make sure I do everything I can so Tubby will have the best possible conditions for survival.

Thanks for your help!

I remember answering your original post. It is great to see you so concerned about wildlife, if only everybody was!

Keep in mind that gray tree frogs have been around for a couple million years, if not for a few hundred, and six months in captivity will not ruin everything they have learned about survival. Ideally, of course, he wouldn't have spent this much time in captivity but of course you had to wait for the right season.

People are wildlife's No. 1 enemy, so release it away from the house, preferably where all of the other frogs are breeding. This is not so that he can start breeding right away, which will not happen, but we do know that if the habitat is good enough for breeding activities it is good enough for him to get reacclimated to the wild. When you release him, he will not be looking back, so it will not do any good to provide him with his familiar landscape structures from captivity.

This is where knowing something about amphibians comes in handy. Amphibians do best when they are not limited by desiccation, this is why the most amphibians migrations and activities occur when it rains. Also, during the day there are many visually oriented predators. So the best time to release it is at night preferably when it has rained within the last 12 hours or is raining right then (best). Do not feed it two or three days before release, you never move animals and stress them with a full stomach.

Good luck!
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...the oldest task in human history: to live on a piece of land without spoiling it."
Aldo Leopold (1938)

"Sometimes I think the surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us."
Calvin and Hobbes (Scientific Progress Goes 'Boink', 1991)

Nice that you saved his life let him go at night. if its a day it rained or going to rain later great.
Lia