Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Area frogs looking forward to Leap Year


It only occurs once every four years but frogs around the world are highly anticipating the 2008 Leap Year. "It's a time for leaping and more leaping," croaked a frog found soaking up the afternoon sun yesterday on Philadelphia's lower Schuylkill River. For millennia frogs have celebrated the "Year of the Leap" in many different ways but one ritual has persisted: the leap. Known for their leaping in non-leap years one study shows that frogs increase leaping up to 75% during Leap Year. "It's quite fascinating the amount of leaping they do considering that the creatures are leapers to begin with," said Hank Sumtimton, a Keystone State University biologist. The frogs that Sumtimton studied were very quick to differentiate between leaping and jumping. "Ohhh.(laughing) Leaping is so different from jumping I don't want to even get into it," said one Delaware River frog.
Whatever the definition we know that the world will see an exponential increase in frog leaping during 2008 much like it did in 2004,2000 etc. As during previous Leap Years frog advocates have asked that high school biology classes consider dissecting lizards in 2008.

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