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Frogging Season Opens
Monday sometimes gets a bad rap. Everyone has heard of
blue Monday, the day you go back to work. But this year blue Monday has
a green side. Monday, June 30 marks the opening of Missouri's frogging
season.
Because midnight marks the start of a new day, froggers who begin a
hunt at sunset with no frogs in possession (including at home in the
freezer) can take one limit of frogs before midnight, then bag another
after the witching hour. To do this legally, however, the first eight
frogs must be kept separate from those taken after midnight.
The bullfrog (Missouri’s state amphibian) and the green frog are
unique among Missouri's game animals because they can be taken either on
a hunting or a fishing permit. If you have a hunting permit, you can
take frogs with a .22 caliber or smaller rimfire rifle or pistol, pellet
gun, longbow, crossbow, hand net or with your bare hands. With a fishing
permit, you may use your hands or a hand net, a gig, a longbow or hook
and line. Frog hunting is legal - and most effective - at night with an
artificial light. Firearms may not be used to take frogs on
Conservation Department areas.
The bullfrog is North America’s biggest frog, measuring up to 8
inches all scrunched up and ready to jump. A good-sized bullfrog can
weigh well over a pound, and much of that is legs. Green frogs are more
modest-sized, topping out at about 4 inches long when sitting. Though
not as large, their legs taste just like those of bullfrogs.
You can tell green frogs from bullfrogs by the fold of skin running
along the sides of green frogs’ bodies.
The daily and possession limits of eight and 16 bullfrogs and green
frogs in the aggregate, respectively, sound liberal. However, it takes a
hefty frog to provide more than a mouthful of food. Almost all the
edible muscle is on the hind legs.
If you are lucky enough to obtain a limit of frogs, cut off the hind
legs and remove the skin before cooking. Pliers with close-fitting jaws
come in handy for gripping the slippery skin.
When pressed about frog legs’ flavor, frog fanciers sometimes say
they taste like chicken. That may be true if you batter and fry frog
legs as you would chicken drumsticks. When sautéed in a little butter,
however, frog legs have a mild flavor that hints of fish. Adding a
little minced garlic to the pan and sprinkling with salt afterwards
makes a delicious dish.
Pan-frying with any commercial breading also yields tasty results.
Other recipes are found in Cy Littleby’s Cookbook. This folksy
compendium of wild cookery is available at the Missouri Department of
Conservation’s regional offices and conservation nature centers. You
also can order the book from the Conservation Department’s online
Nature Shop (www.mdcnatureshop.com) for $3.50 plus shipping, handling
and sales tax, where applicable, or with a toll-free telephone call to
877/521-8632. It also is available at many Conservation Department
offices and at conservation nature centers.
Male frogs fill the air above Missouri lakes and streams with their
songs on summer nights. The bullfrog’s tune is a deep base chant that
sounds something like “Jug-O-Rum, Jug-O-Rum.” Green frogs are less
musical. Their “songs” have been described as sounding like someone
plucking loose banjo strings. The resulting sound can be a soft chuckle
or a single, explosive bark.
The idea of beating other froggers to the punch induces a few outlaws
to start the season early each year. You can help preserve the bullfrog
bounty until opening day by calling the toll-free Operation Game Thief
hot line, 800/392-1111, and reporting offenders.
For more information about catching frogs, visit
http://mdc.mo.gov/conmag/2003/06/40.htm.
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