(Frog estivation (Hibernation that starts in the summer.)
The topic of estivation and hibernation is a topic full of miracles. Not all animals go through these processes, but of the many that do, each tells of a different miraculous process. For this article we will focus on what isz known as Burrowing frogs. Estivation is similar to hibernation and it takes place in areas where it gets VERY hot and VERY dry for long periods. All sources of water dry up and there’s no rain from anywhere from 6 months to 2 OR MORE years! Now, before we start, you must remember that these are frogs. They really don’t know much. In fact, they “know” very little. Each frog is totally on its own. As the heat builds up, the frog sees that all the local water lakes and ponds are basically pretty much dried up. So, what would you do? I doubt you would do what they do. They dig backwards, down into some still muddy earth. Low and behold, they have special back feet that have “shovels” that are “digging implements” on them that help them be able to dig well. Typical frog legs are webbed and won’t dig well. OK. So now they are below ground. Now what? So, here is a tail of two miracles. The first miracle actually takes place very frequently, nevertheless it’s still a very complicated process. It called molting and by frogs it’s called shedding or sloughing. This is a very complex chemical process spurred on by select hormones that separates the outer skin of the frog relatively frequently. In some species it can be as often as every day, and other species wait longer. It’s needed because, believe it or not, frogs can breathe through their nostrils AND through their skin! In fact, they do a LOT of breathing through their skin. There’s a very high concentration of blood capillaries right under this very thin skin layer. It allows air to flow through the skin, thereby allowing oxygen into the capillaries, and carbon dioxide, out of the capillaries through the skin to the outside air. Now, in order to keep the skin fresh and clean so that it can keep up this vital breathing process, every day or so, in some species a little longer, they shed their skin. With their front and back legs, they pull off the old skin and actually eat it all up! Yuk! It works as follows: First a new layer of skin develops over the capillaries, but still under the old layer. Once that’s in place, there’s a special fluid that is secreted in between the new and old layer, which then separates the 2 layers. Now that the old layer is separate, it can be shed. This itself needs numerous working parts and hormones for it to work properly. It’s quite a miraculous process, but that’s not for this article. Ok, now that you know this, we go back to our burrowing frog digging down under the ground. Ok, so what’s next? The frog just sits around, doing nothing. Now, what is the frog expecting to happen? Why did it go down under ground? Believe me, it has no idea what’s supposed to happen. Hashem put in it instincts that it should dig underground. NOT a good idea if you don’t have a game plan ready to implement, since there’s no food (insects), air, or water down there. But “LUCKILY” low and behold, an important process start to happen. Firstly, (as in hibernating animals as well, their system starts to shut down. Their breathing slows down dramatically. Their heart is barely pumping. Most of their systems are basically shutting down. The less systems working the less energy needed, and the less wastes produced. The systems slow down as much as 75 – 80%. But one system goes into overdrive. The shedding system stops half way. The old layer is shed, BUT it is kept on the frog. Then a day or two later another layer is shed, but it is also kept in place, and from underneath it pushes up the older skin layer. The layers are very thin. As time goes on the layers really pile up and it forms a cocoon all around the frog! It closes all the openings, including their mouth and from where they excrete their wastes. HOWEVER, LOW AND BEHOLD, the cocoon has “brains” and it always leaves the nostrils open!! These layers continue to pile up, thereby making the cocoon thicker and thicker. It can have over 50 layers of shed skin. Now, how in the world can dumb skin cells “know” to stop right by the two nostril holes? They cover the mouth from where they eat and they cover the opening where they excrete their wastes, so why not continue and cover the nostrils? Is there a stop sign on their nostrils? Do these skin cells know how to read the sign? I doubt you will find the answer to this question anywhere. Trust me, I looked all over for one and I couldn’t find one. This miracle clearly shows that there MUST be a G-d controlling things way too obvious, and they don’t like to admit to that.
What’s the purpose of the cocoon? The cocoon keeps the water in the frog from evaporating thereby causing dehydration which would be fatal to the frog. It’s getting very hot and dry all over and the cocoon is a VERY effective method for keeping in all the moisture. In a short while it curtails the rate of water loss very significantly.
Now we will discuss another miracle found with not only burrowing frogs, but with almost all animals that either hibernate over the winter for about 6 months, or estivate over the summer months. But it’s even more amazing with burrowing frogs since they can have dry spells as long as 2-3+ years and they will stay underground that entire time without budging an inch!! Miraculously they survive, but not only do they “survive” but when it finally starts to rain again, they are up and running almost IMMEDIATELY! So, what’s the big deal? The big deal is that by humans and, lehavdil, animals that don’t hibernate, even if they are immobile for a short amount of time, as short as ten days, their muscle mass starts to wither away. It’s called muscle atrophy. Someone who is, chas v’shalom, bed ridden for even a relatively short time very often needs to go to physical therapy to learn how to start using their muscles again, and if it was for a long time in disuse, serious muscle atrophy will set in. It’s called the disuse (of one’s organs) syndrome. But, low and behold, where it’s Hashem that put into his creatures the instinct to hibernate or estivate, basically NO HARM occurs to any part of their body! It’s an amazing miracle. The heart comes close to stopping, the blood circulation is almost at a halt, the other main organs are all running at 20-25% of normal capacity, and certainly, the muscles which have come to a 100% complete halt for such a long time should be in really bad shape. Nevertheless, since it’s brought about through Hashem, the same Hashem made sure that the body should have various special mechanisms and controlling hormones and genes, that make sure everything will be in FULL functioning order when the hibernation or estivation comes to its end, in spite of the extremely long vacation!
As a side point, here’s an interesting brief explanation how bears manage through their hibernation. To understand the miracle involved, you must understand that if an animal were not be able to use the bathroom for a somewhat prolonged time, they would probably die from uric acid buildup in the kidneys, which is fatal. Here’s what a goyisha book writes about how bears manage to go so long during the winter without “using the bathroom”. “But get this: bears have special microbes in their guts that, during the winter months, (when they hibernate) SOMEHOW convert the uric acid to nitrogen, which goes on to make new amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein (which are essential for the use of the body). With the protein, which is basically food, they are able to maintain lean body tissue in the comfort of their own dens without eating or eliminating waste. If that is not a miracle, what is?” This wasn’t a word for word quote, but the end that asks, If that is not a miracle, what is? Is an exact quote! I couldn’t have said it better! Basically, what should turn into urine, is SOMEHOW turned into food! That IS a miracle.
Burrowing frogs and the whole process of estivation and hibernation is a miraculous process made by Hashem! There’s MUCH more to these processes, but it’s not for this article.
Picture of the layers of cocoon skin, one on top of the other magnified many times.
Picture of an empty frog cocoon. You can see the nostrils aren’t covered. There are holes there, but nowhere else!
About the Author
Rabbi Shmuel Waldman, currently 60 years old, has dedicated over five decades to religious education, heavily influenced by the teachings of Rabbi Avigdor Miller ZTL, founder of Mirrer Yeshiva. At the age of 17, he began following Rabbi Miller’s lectures and formed a close bond with Rav Don Segal, shlit”a, the Mashgiach of Mirrer Yeshiva. After spending four years at Mirrer Yeshiva Kollel, Rabbi Waldman joined the Kollel of Yeshiva Mercaz Hatorah of Belle Harbor, eventually becoming the Mashgiach of the high school. In this role, he provided guidance to students through lectures and personal discussions, which led to the creation of his book Beyond A Reasonable Doubt: Convincing Evidence to the Truths of Judaism, published in 2002 by Feldheim. The book has since sold tens of thousands of copies and is considered a classic in kiruv, offering clear explanations of Judaism’s core beliefs. Rabbi Waldman has also taught at Yeshiva Tiferes Moshe and in various summer camps, leaving a lasting impact on his students. For the past decade, he has been working on a Sefer about the significance of proper prayer in Orthodox Judaism. Recently, Rabbi Waldman has launched a blog highlighting examples of Intelligent Design and debunking the Theory of Evolution. He also shares his insights through a YouTube channel focused on religious education.