Melbourne Water Frog Census

• Life cycles: Explore a frog's life cycle. See metamorphosis and learn how a tadpole becomes a terrestrial creature. You can also purchase a tadpole kit and watch your own frog life cycle in the classroom!
• Food chains: Watch a frog eat a live cricket and push it down its throat with its eyes! Learn about warning colour, camouflage, escape and other amphibian strategies to avoid being eaten.
• Adaptations and environments: Learn about amphibian survival mechanisms. Meet frogs that have invented poisons and medicines, developed ways to withstand freezing, drying and even death in their quest to occupy the earth's diverse environments. Learn about the habitat of Australia's frogs - from rainforest to bathrooms.
• Endangered species: Human changes to habitats are causing frogs to disappear. Meet Australia's most endangered frog, see what local scientists are doing and learn what you can do to save our precious amphibian species

Bookings are made via Melbourne Water and activities can be combined with Melbourne Water activities.

• Water quality testing: Groups just starting out are shown how to measure the pH, electrical conductivity, temperature, turbidity and flow rate of our local creeks and rivers. Additional parameters for more advanced groups include the monitoring of nutrient levels and dissolved oxygen concentrations. Macroinvertebrate surveys are another important, and extremely popular, part of the Melbourne Waterwatch program. These surveys involve the identification of all the 'bugs' and 'critters' found within the aquatic environment. Macroinvertebrates are an excellent indicator of river health, as different types of macroinvertebrates vary in their sensitivity to pollution.
• Habitat surveys are also conducted by Melbourne Waterwatch participants to examine both the physical structure of our creeks and rivers, and the continuity and structure of vegetation along our waterways. Two levels of habitat assessment can be undertaken. The first has been developed for community groups and students of all ages to assess streamside vegetation and in-stream habitat. The second incorporates the latest Index of Stream Condition methodology, and aims to provide selected participants with the high-level skills required to assess the physical structure and streamside zone of Melbourne's creeks and rivers. All information will be made available to local government and catchment managers.
• Drain stencilling.