Greek Frog - Greece

Greece ranks as the 97th largest country in the world, but despite its small size, it has the 11th longest coastline in the world. Three seas have shaped Greece’s extensive coastline: the Aegean, the Ionian, and the Mediterranean Sea. There are more than 2,000 Greek islands; Crete, at 8,303 square kilometers, is the largest.

- - - - -

Rana graeca - The Greek frog is found throughout Greece and the Balkan area. It has a high tolerance for colder climates and can survive in the higher mountain valleys, but rarely ventures far from a steady water source. The color is often grey or brown with dark patches. Male coloration becomes darker during the mating season when they gather in the water or on the banks of slow moving streams to call out to receptive females. An egg mass can contain 200 to 2,000 eggs, the number being dependent on the female’s age and health.

Hemlock - Greece

Conium maculatum - Hemlock is a herbaceous plant within the Apiaceae family and is native to Europe and the Mediterranean region. The leaves, seeds, and roots of the hemlock plant are highly poisonous. They contain high levels of coniine, a substance fatal to humans and livestock if ingested. Coniine will disrupt the central nervous system by blocking the neuromuscular junctions causing eventual paralysis of the respiratory muscles resulting in death by asphyxiation. 

- - - - -

The concept of polis, or city states, flourished in the Archaic Period of Greece. One such state, Lacedaemon, with its main settlement of Sparta, began its rise to prominence in the 10th century BC. It became the dominate Greek power after defeating Athens in the Peloponnesian War. Sparta was eventually defeated by Thebes, another Greek city-state, in 371 BC. Lacedaemon survived the war, but lost its regional supremacy. In a weakened state, it was absorbed into the Roman Empire in 146 BC.