Portal:Frogs

The Frogs Portal

Various kinds of frog

A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek ἀνούρα, literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough skin texture due to wart-like parotoid glands tend to be called toads, but the distinction between frogs and toads is informal and purely cosmetic, not from taxonomy or evolutionary history.

Frogs are widely distributed, ranging from the tropics to subarctic regions, but the greatest concentration of species diversity is in tropical rainforest and associated wetlands. They account for around 88% of extant amphibian species, and are one of the five most diverse vertebrate orders. The oldest fossil "proto-frog" Triadobatrachus is known from the Early Triassic of Madagascar (250 million years ago), but molecular clock dating suggests their divergence from other amphibians may extend further back to the Permian, 265 million years ago.

Adult frogs have 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 both fresh water and on dry land; some species are adapted for living underground or in trees. As their skin is semi-permeable, making them susceptible to dehydration, they either live in moist niches or have special adaptations to deal with drier habitats. Frogs produce a wide range of vocalisations, 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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Adult male

The American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus), often simply known as the bullfrog in Canada and the United States, is a large true frog native to eastern North America. It typically inhabits large permanent water bodies such as swamps, ponds, and lakes. Bullfrogs can also be found in manmade habitats such as pools, koi ponds, canals, ditches and culverts. The bullfrog gets its name from the sound the male makes during the breeding season, which sounds similar to a bull bellowing. The bullfrog is large and is commonly eaten throughout its range, especially in the southern United States where they are plentiful.

Their presence as a food source has led to bullfrogs being distributed around the world outside of their native range. Bullfrogs have been introduced into the Western United States, South America, Western Europe, China, Japan, South Korea and southeast Asia. In these places they are considered an invasive species due to their voracious appetite and the large number of eggs they produce, which has a negative effect on native amphibians, certain insects and other fauna. Bullfrogs are very skittish which can make their capture difficult and thus they often become established. (Full article...)

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Photograph of the Italian tree frog Hyla intermedia. Its natural habitats are the temperate forests, rivers, and freshwater marshes of countries like Italy, Slovenia, and Switzerland. It feeds on small invertebrates such as flies, mosquitoes and midges. In the breeding season, dominant males establish territories near a pond or other body of water and advertise themselves by calling. Other male frogs, known as "satellites" may lurk nearby and try to intercept females attracted by the territorial males' calls.
Photo credit: Benny Trapp

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General images

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

Image 1Dead Frog with Flies by Ambrosius Bosschaert II, c. 1630 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 2Detail of Josiah Wedgwood's Frog Service, 1773–4, made for Catherine the Great of Russia (from Frogs in culture)
Image 3Vietnamese folk painting "Lão oa giảng độc" (from Toad)
Image 4White-lipped bright-eyed frog, Boophis albilabris, Mantellidae, Madagascar (from Tree frog)
Image 5Common toad, female and male on her back. (from True toad)
Image 6Ascaphus montanus tadpole (supine position), showing the large oral sucker (from Tailed frog)
Image 7Red-eyed treefrog, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica (from Tree frog)
Image 8Frog and Mouse by Getsuju, a Japanese artist of the Edo period (from Frogs in culture)
Image 9Gray tree frog, Hyla versicolor, Hylidae, eastern North America (from Tree frog)
Image 10A frog being eaten by King Stork, an illustration by Milo Winter in a 1919 Aesop anthology (from Frogs in culture)
Image 11Black torrent frog
Micrixalus saxicola
Ranidae
India (from Torrent frog)
Image 12Frog pictured in the coat of arms of Baloži (from Frogs in culture)
Image 13Wallace's flying frog (Rhacophorus nigropalmatus) (from Flying frog)
Image 14American toad (Anaxyrus americanus) (from True toad)
Image 15Powdered glass frog, Cochranella pulverata, Centrolenidae, Honduras to Ecuador (from Tree frog)
Image 16Freddo Frog advertisement, 1930 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 17Crapaud et Grenouille ("Frog and Toad") by Jean Carriès, between 1889 and 1894 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 18Moche frog, 200 AD (from Frogs in culture)
Image 19Vietnamese folk painting "Nhân nghĩa" (from Toad)
Image 20A limestone carving of a frog was found at Tell es-Sakan, an Egyptian settlement in Palestine. The frog dates to the last third of the 4th millennium BCE. (from Frogs in culture)
Image 21Hermenegildo Bustos, Still life with fruit, 1874 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 22Wrestling frogs from Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga, cartoon, Japan, 12th century (from Frogs in culture)
Image 23American green tree frog, Dryophytes cinereus or Hyla cinerea, Hylidae, central and southeastern United States (from Tree frog)
Image 24Eungella torrent frog
Taudactylus eungellensis
Myobatrachidae
Australia (from Torrent frog)
Image 25"My Old Friend Dr. Frog". Promotional postcard for "Frog In Your Throat" Company throat medicine (from Frogs in culture)
Image 26Common tree frog, Polypedates leucomystax, Rhacophoridae, southern to eastern Asia (from Tree frog)
Image 27Entre ciel et terre, by Gustave Doré, 1862 (from Frogs in culture)
Image 28Torrent treefrog
Litoria nannotis
Hylidae
Australia (from Torrent frog)
Image 29Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee 2016 (from Frog jumping contest)
Image 30Big-eyed tree frog, Leptopelis vermiculatus, Hyperoliidae, Tanzania (from Tree frog)
Image 31European treefrog (Hyla arborea) (from Tree frog)
Image 32Early Dynastic (c. 3000 BC) frog statuette) (from Frogs in culture)
Image 33Roman lamp mount shaped like a frog. (from Frogs in culture)
Image 34Malabar tree toad, Pedostibes tuberculosus, Hyperoliidae, India (from Tree frog)
Image 35Old Dutch tile from Friesland (from Frogs in culture)
Image 36Gladiator treefrog (Hypsiboas rosenbergi), Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica (from Tree frog)

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Did you know?

... that the New England tree frog and the Davies' tree frog (pictured) are threatened by the introduction of exotic fish such as trout into the streams in which they breed?
... that the Central American frog Duellmanohyla soralia is critically endangered and its population decline is due, at least in part, to the fungal disease chytridiomycosis?
... that during dry weather, the Texas toad remains dormant?
...that although the tiny Hochstetters frog of New Zealand has no tail, it has atavistic tail-wagging muscles?
... that, after the female Jog night frog has laid a clutch of eggs, both parents are involved in guarding them?