Category: Fantastic Frog Facts

Frozen frogsicles!

by Catherine Carvell, posted in Animal adaptations, Fantastic Frog Facts

Another fantastic frog fact for you!

The Wood Frog (Rana Sylvatica) can survive being completely FROZEN for weeks at a time!

The Wood Frog lives in the cold Arctic environment of Alaska so this is a very clever adaptation to have.

During the freezing winter, the tiny amphibians can survive for weeks with an incredible two-thirds of their body water completely frozen. Frozen frog popsicles! 

When their body temperature drops, they stop breathing and their hearts do not beat. In order to keep ice from freezing in their cells, they pull water away from their extremities and produce a type of antifreeze solution (known as cryoprotectants) that keeps them safe.

In most animals, prolonged exposure to freezing temperatures causes cellular shrinkage — a process in which the formation of ice in the tissues pulls water from the body’s cells, essentially sucking them dry and eventually killing the cell. But in Wood Frogs, the cryoprotectants in their bodies, which includes glucose (blood sugar) and urea, lowers the freezing temperature of the animal’s tissues and reduces the amount of stress on the cells and tissues, allowing them to survive a deep freeze.

 Watch this video for fan-froggy-tastic footage of the Wood Frog defrosting.  Amazing!

 

The endangered vomiting frog!

by Catherine Carvell, posted in Animal adaptations, Endangered Species, Fantastic Frog Facts

DARWIN’S FROG 

Darwin’s frog was named after Charles Darwin, who discovered this unique creature living in Argentina and Chile, while on his famous world voyage.

Darwin’s Frog is a very cleverly adapted frog. It camouflages itself from predators by lying on the ground looking like a dead leaf (it has a pointy nose giving it a leaf shape). It can also turn on its back exposing the boldly patterned surface of its belly. The most amazing feature of this frog however, is that the tadpoles develop into frogs inside the male frog’s throat!

First, the female lays her eggs in the water. The male guards the eggs for 2-3 weeks but still, about half are eaten by insects and other predators. Any eggs that actually make it to the tadpole stage (usually about half) are swallowed by the male, who carries them around in his vocal pouch and protects them as they grow.

Once the tadpoles are tiny froglets, and large enough to protect themselves, they hop out of dad’s mouth and swim away. What a clever and unique way to protect your babies!

But sometimes clever adaptations like this are not enough.

There are two species of tadpole-swallowing frogs. Rhinoderma darwinii is considered vulnerable and Rhinoderma rufum is considered critically endangered.

The vulnerable status of these frogs seems to be due to several reasons including deforestation, habitat loss, climate change and disease.

 

 

What is frog slime?

by Catherine Carvell, posted in Animal adaptations, Fantastic Frog Facts

In Darcy Moon and the Deep-Fried Frogs, Jumpy’s family and friends are frognapped for their tasty breathing mucus.frogs1

This is obviously a fictitious story, but a small part of it is based on fact.

Do you know what part????

Babadaboom, that’s right!

Frogs produce MUCUS!

What is frog mucus?

It is a special type of slime that frogs secrete to keep their skin moist.

It is important for frogs’ skin to remain moist because frogs BREATHE through their SKIN.

The mucus that frogs secrete traps moisture next to the skin. This moisture then transfers oxygen (from either water or air) into the frog’s body.

This process is called cutaneous gas exchange.

If the frog dries out, it will suffocate.

Do frogs always breathe through their skin, or just when they are underwater?

Adult frogs ALWAYS breathe through their skin, even when they are on land.

 

Frogs are amphibians, which means that they spend part of their life in water, and part on land.

tadpole-to-frog

They begin life as tadpoles, taking in oxygen through their skin and gills.

When they turn into adult frogs they lose their gills and grow lungs, but still breathe continuously through their skin, even when on land.

When a frog is under water its lungs are useless and it breathes entirely through its skin.

 

Sometimes, when a frog is out of water hybernating or being inactive, it gets all the oxygen it needs from its skin alone.

But when a frog is leaping around eating bugs it needs more oxygen and uses its lungs to catch its breath.

In order to pump oxygen into the lungs, the frog draws air through the nostrils by a movement of the throat, which is why it puffs out.

Frog skin facts.

Frogs don’t drink water through their mouths at all, instead they soak it into their bodies through their skin.croaking-frog

Frogs breathe through their skin.

A frog can breathe through its skin under water and in air, but the skin must be kept moist at all times.

Frogs secrete a mucus to help keep their skin wet.

In some frogs, the mucus can also contain antibacterial or anti fungal chemicals to help protect the frog from disease.

Frog skin is sometimes poisonous and often camouflaged.

Freakiest frog everrrrrrr!

by Catherine Carvell, posted in Animal adaptations, Endangered Species, Fantastic Frog Facts

Well, technically speaking, the freakiest frog ever is NOT a frog.

It’s a TOAD.

A Surinam sea toad.

And it’s soooo FREAKY that it’s TOTALLY AWESOME!

The Surinam sea toad has adapted in the most amazing way. Only nature could have thought of this!

To keep their babies safe until they are big enough to survive on their own, Surinam sea toads implant eggs into the skin of the female’s back. The larvae develop into tadpoles which remain protected until they emerge as fully developed toads.

It’s genius!

And totally GROSS!

Check out the video. Eugh !!!!!

Large flippered feet and greatly flattened bodies make these amphibians well suited to life in South America’s murky ponds and swamps, but habitat loss means this their future survival is currently regarded as threatened.

Are they adorable? Or horrifying?

One thing’s for sure. They are toad-ally FREAKY!

Top ten frog adaptations

by Catherine Carvell, posted in Animal adaptations, Fantastic Frog Facts

All animals adapt to survive in the wild, and frogs are no exception. Here is a list of the top ten physical adaptations that enable frogs to thrive in wetlands.

1. Legs: Frogs have very powerful back legs and webbed feet that help them swim and jump.

croaking-frogSome frogs even use their legs to dig, or burrow underground for hibernating. Certain frogs can jump up to 20 times their own body length in a single bound.

2. Skin: Frogs can breathe though their skin so they can stay underwater as long as they want.

3. Skin: Frogs don’t drink water through their mouths at all, instead they soak it into their bodies through their skin.

orange-frog

 

 

4. Skin: Frog skin is often camouflaged to hide from predators. Some frogs can change the colour of their skin depending on its surroundings.

5. Skin: Some frogs secrete poison through their skin. Many of the more easily visible, brightly colored tropical frogs are colored in this way to warn predators that they are poisonous.

6. Croaks: Frogs attract each other for mating with their croak. Each frog species has a distinct croak. They have vocal sacs, which fill with air, and can amplify the sound up to a mile away.

7. Tongue: When a frog spots a tasty meal, it flicks out its long, sticky tongue. The tongue wraps around the meal/insect and pulls it back into the frog’s mouth. Unlike humans, a frog’s tongue is not attached to the back of its mouth. Instead it is attached to the front, enabling the frog to stick its tongue out much further.

8. Teeth: Frogs do have teeth, but they are small and not good for chewing. Instead, close-up-frogfrogs use their teeth to hold their prey in their mouths until they are ready to swallow.

9. Eyes: Frogs swallow using their eyes. Its eyes retract into its head and push the food down its throat. Frog’ eyes are on top of their heads so when they swim close to the surface of the water, only their eyes are exposed. This way, they can quickly spot danger before danger spots them.

10. Eyes: Frogs can see forwards, sideways and upwards all at the same time and never close their eyes, even when they sleep. They even have a third eyelid which is see-through and protects the frog’s sensitive eyes when it is under water.

The Desert Rain Frog

by Catherine Carvell, posted in Animal adaptations, Endangered Species, Fantastic Frog Facts

Not all frogs live near water. In fact some frogs, like this one, live where there’s no water at all.

Yes I agree, this may be the cutest frog in the world!

Just like a squeaky baby toy.

But the Desert Rain Frog, which is found along the western coast of Namibia and South Africa, is currently listed as vulnerable due to habitat loss – which is one step away from being endangered and that is really not good at all.

How can this frog live in such dry conditions?

The Desert Rain Frog has no tadpole stage and survives by burrowing under the sand to find moisture. It has a spherical body (a clever adaptation which means it retains water for longer) and feet built for digging.

I love this frog! Do you?

Now it’s time to watch that video again. So awesome, right?!