Southern Leopard Frog

Leopard Frog

Rana utricularia

Size: to 3.5"

Habitat: in and around water

Notes: Sometimes wanders well away from water.


tadpole

Tadpoles are larval frogs. They prefer quiet vegetated waters, where they feed on algae, although under adverse conditions they may even become cannibals. Tadpoles are clumsy swimmers and are usually found in waters devoid of predatory fish, such as temporary pools. Eventually, they grow legs, lose the tail, and climb out of the water as frogs ( or toads. ) Anyone who hasn't raised a tadpole in a jar has missed a part of their childhood.

Leopard Frog

steam-powered winch
A steam-powered winch on a schooner barge. Note the various drums for drawing up anchor chain, towing hawsers, etc, and the anchor chains themselves going down through the deck into the chain locker below.

Prior to steam power, the only force available on a sailing ship to perform all the necessary work was the men on board. For some tasks, such as raising the anchor, it might be necessary to yoke the entire crew to a multi-deck manual capstan. On the largest vessels, even with every available man, this might take several hours to complete. With the advent of steam power, a "donkey engine" and a single engineer could do the work of many men, in less time, and these were soon installed in almost all vessels.