Portal:Frogs

The Frogs Portal

Various types of frog

A frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek ἀνούρα, literally 'without tail'). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" Triadobatrachus is known from the Early Triassic of Madagascar, but molecular clock dating suggests their split from other amphibians may extend further back to the Permian, 265 million years ago. Frogs are widely distributed, ranging from the tropics to subarctic regions, but the greatest concentration of species diversity is in tropical rainforest. Frogs account for around 88% of extant amphibian species. They are also one of the five most diverse vertebrate orders. Warty frog species tend to be called toads, but the distinction between frogs and toads is informal, not from taxonomy or evolutionary history.

An adult frog has a stout body, protruding eyes, anteriorly-attached tongue, limbs folded underneath, and no tail (the tail of tailed frogs is an extension of the male cloaca). Frogs have glandular skin, with secretions ranging from distasteful to toxic. Their skin varies in colour from well-camouflaged dappled brown, grey and green to vivid patterns of bright red or yellow and black to show toxicity and ward off predators. Adult frogs live in fresh water and on dry land; some species are adapted for living underground or in trees.

Frogs typically lay their eggs in water. The eggs hatch into aquatic larvae called tadpoles that have tails and internal gills. They have highly specialized rasping mouth parts suitable for herbivorous, omnivorous or planktivorous diets. The life cycle is completed when they metamorphose into adults. A few species deposit eggs on land or bypass the tadpole stage. Adult frogs generally have a carnivorous diet consisting of small invertebrates, but omnivorous species exist and a few feed on plant matter. Frog skin has a rich microbiome which is important to their health. Frogs are extremely efficient at converting what they eat into body mass. They are an important food source for predators and part of the food web dynamics of many of the world's ecosystems. The skin is semi-permeable, making them susceptible to dehydration, so they either live in moist places or have special adaptations to deal with dry habitats. Frogs produce a wide range of vocalizations, particularly in their breeding season, and exhibit many different kinds of complex behaviors to attract mates, to fend off predators and to generally survive. (Full article...)

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Female Puerto Rican rock frog

The Puerto Rican rock frog (Eleutherodactylus cooki), also known as the Puerto Rican cave-dwelling frog or rock coqui, and locally as coquí guajón, or guajón for brevity, is a threatened frog species from the coqui genus. This unique species of tropical frogs dwells primarily in crevices and grottos in the Cuchilla de Panduras mountain range in southeastern Puerto Rico. The native name guajón is derived from its habitat, guajonales, which are caves formed by rock formations between huge stones. Despite being the state animal and considered emblematic of the region, of the 17 species of coquí, three are believed to be extinct and the rest are rare and declining in numbers. The Puerto Rican rock frog is extremely restricted in geographical distribution. The frog is threatened due to deforestation, agricultural, rural, and industrial development, and the associated infrastructure. It is sometimes called the "demon of Puerto Rico" (demonio de Puerto Rico in Spanish) because of its eerie call and phantom-like appearance. The species was first described by American herpetologist, Chapman Grant in 1932. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various frog-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Powdered glass frog, Cochranella pulverata, Centrolenidae, Honduras to Ecuador (from Tree frog)
Image 2Gray tree frog, Hyla versicolor, Hylidae, eastern North America (from Tree frog)
Image 3Crapaud et Grenouille ("Frog and Toad") by Jean Carriès, between 1889 and 1894 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 4Vietnamese folk painting "Nhân nghĩa" (from Toad)
Image 5Early Dynastic (c. 3000 BC) frog statuette) (from Frogs in culture)
Image 6European treefrog (Hyla arborea) (from Tree frog)
Image 7Moche frog, 200 AD (from Frogs in culture)
Image 8Wallace's flying frog (Rhacophorus nigropalmatus) (from Flying frog)
Image 9White-lipped bright-eyed frog, Boophis albilabris, Mantellidae, Madagascar (from Tree frog)
Image 10Detail of Josiah Wedgwood's Frog Service, 1773–4, made for Catherine the Great of Russia (from Frogs in culture)
Image 11Ascaphus montanus tadpole (supine position), showing the large oral sucker (from Tailed frog)
Image 12Roman lamp mount shaped like a frog. (from Frogs in culture)
Image 13Torrent treefrog
Litoria nannotis
Hylidae
Australia (from Torrent frog)
Image 14Eungella torrent frog
Taudactylus eungellensis
Myobatrachidae
Australia (from Torrent frog)
Image 15Frog pictured in the coat of arms of Baloži (from Frogs in culture)
Image 16Malabar tree toad, Pedostibes tuberculosus, Hyperoliidae, India (from Tree frog)
Image 17Frog and Mouse by Getsuju, a Japanese artist of the Edo period (from Frogs in culture)
Image 18Entre ciel et terre, by Gustave Doré, 1862 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 19Big-eyed tree frog, Leptopelis vermiculatus, Hyperoliidae, Tanzania (from Tree frog)
Image 20American toad (Anaxyrus americanus) (from True toad)
Image 21Red-eyed treefrog, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica (from Tree frog)
Image 22American green tree frog, Dryophytes cinereus or Hyla cinerea, Hylidae, central and southeastern United States (from Tree frog)
Image 23Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee 2016 (from Frog jumping contest)
Image 24"My Old Friend Dr. Frog". Promotional postcard for "Frog In Your Throat" Company throat medicine (from Frogs in culture)
Image 25Hermenegildo Bustos, Still life with fruit, 1874 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 26Black torrent frog
Micrixalus saxicola
Ranidae
India (from Torrent frog)
Image 27Gladiator treefrog (Hypsiboas rosenbergi), Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica (from Tree frog)
Image 28Wrestling frogs from Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga, cartoon, Japan, 12th century (from Frogs in culture)
Image 29Vietnamese folk painting "Lão oa giảng độc" (from Toad)
Image 30Dead Frog with Flies by Ambrosius Bosschaert II, c. 1630 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 31A frog being eaten by King Stork, an illustration by Milo Winter in a 1919 Aesop anthology (from Frogs in culture)
Image 32Common tree frog, Polypedates leucomystax, Rhacophoridae, southern to eastern Asia (from Tree frog)
Image 33Freddo Frog advertisement, 1930 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 34Common toad, female and male on her back. (from True toad)
Image 35Old Dutch tile from Friesland (from Frogs in culture)

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Did you know?

... that the Blanchard's cricket frog (pictured) is considered threatened or endangered in three states, but is not listed under the US Endangered Species Act?
... that Eichwald's toad was first described in 2008, having previously been considered to be a subspecies of the Caucasian toad?
... that Malcolm's Ethiopian toad has what is believed to be a unique breeding strategy with many females laying their eggs at a single site on land?
... that the male frog Allobates femoralis (pictured) carries his tadpoles to pools of water?
... that the largest living frog species is the African Goliath frog?