Wonderfully weird

Wait. Frogs can do that?

From see-through bellies to frozen winters and extraordinary nurseries, these animals have far more going on than a familiar “ribbit”.

Toads are frogs, too.

“Toad” is a common name, not a separate amphibian order. Frogs and toads all belong to Anura.

Reference ↗

A winter survival specialist.

The wood frog can survive the freezing of much of its body water. This remarkable adaptation is not something other pet frogs can copy.

Reference ↗

See-through superheroes.

Many glass frogs have translucent belly skin through which organs are visible. The transparency varies by species and by body region.

Reference ↗

A very large leap from tiny.

Goliath frogs are the largest living frogs. Their native home is the fast-flowing river habitat of Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea.

Reference ↗

Colour with a message.

Bright poison-frog colours can warn predators about chemical defences. Many acquire their defensive alkaloids from food in the wild.

Reference ↗

The eggs have a babysitter.

Male Darwin’s frogs carry developing young in a vocal sac. An organ used for calling becomes a remarkable nursery.

Reference ↗

Eyes help at dinner.

When swallowing, some frogs retract their eyes towards the mouth cavity, helping move prey down the throat.

Reference ↗

A frog with a tomato disguise.

Tomato frogs are named for their reddish colour. Their appearance is a warning rather than an invitation to touch.

Reference ↗

Skin is serious equipment.

A frog’s skin is permeable. Water and contaminants can cross it, which is why clean water and minimal handling are so important.

Reference ↗

Some skip the pond nursery.

Not every frog has a swimming tadpole stage. In direct-developing species, young hatch from eggs as miniature frogs.

Reference ↗

An aquatic frog still needs air.

African dwarf frogs live underwater, yet must come to the surface to breathe. An aquarium must allow easy, unobstructed access to air.

Reference ↗

A golden frog gives a wave.

Panamanian golden frogs communicate with visual signals as well as calls — useful beside noisy streams.

Reference ↗

The “milk” is not for drinking.

The Amazon milk frog’s name refers to a defensive skin secretion, not to mammalian milk.

Reference ↗

No passport for pond water.

Moving frogs, tadpoles, spawn or pond water between sites can move disease too. Let garden wildlife colonise on its own.

Reference ↗

Their world needs protecting.

Habitat loss and infectious diseases, including chytrid fungus, are major threats to amphibians. Protecting wild habitats matters alongside conservation breeding.

Reference ↗

Names can change.

Frog classification is actively researched. Scientific names sometimes change as relationships become clearer; familiar older names can still appear in care books.

Reference ↗

A life in transformations

Egg. Tadpole. Froglet. Frog.

The familiar pond cycle — with a few extraordinary exceptions.

The egg

Many frogs lay eggs in water, but some attach them to leaves, carry them, or use terrestrial nests.

The tadpole

Many larvae live in water with gills. Diets and body shapes vary; not all tadpoles eat only algae.

The froglet

Legs develop, the tail is absorbed and the body changes. Species differ in how quickly this happens.

The adult

Most adults are predators. Some return to water to breed; others use very different strategies.

Timing varies with species and conditions. Some frogs develop directly from eggs into froglets. AMNH frog biology ↗

Little words with big meanings

Word	What it means
Anura	The amphibian order containing frogs and toads.
Amplexus	A mating embrace in which one frog grips another; its position varies among groups.
Arboreal	Living in or spending much time in trees and other vegetation.
Aestivation	A period of dormancy associated with hot or dry conditions in some species.
Metamorphosis	The developmental transformation between larval and adult forms.
Direct development	Development within the egg into a froglet, without a free-living tadpole stage.
Aposematism	Warning signals, such as conspicuous colours, associated with a defence.
Chytrid	A group of fungi; some species cause serious disease in amphibians.
SVL	Snout-to-vent length: body length excluding the legs.
Dimorphism	Differences between forms, often used for differences between males and females.