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 (ἀνούρα, literally without tail in Ancient Greek). 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...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Selected article - show another

Leptodactylus fallax, commonly known as the mountain chicken or giant ditch frog, is a critically endangered species of frog that is native to the Caribbean islands of Dominica and Montserrat. The population declined by at least 80% from 1995 to 2004, with further significant declines later. A tiny wild population remains on Dominica where there are efforts to preserve it, but few or none survive in the wild on Montserrat and its survival now relies on a captive breeding project involving several zoos. The initial decline was linked to hunting for human consumption, along with habitat loss and natural disasters, but the most serious threat now appears to be the fungal disease chytridiomycosis, which was the primary cause of the most recent rapid decline. On Montserrat it is known as the mountain chicken, while on Dominica it is known as the crapaud, which is simply the French word for "toad". (Full article...)

List of selected articles

edit

Selected image

More pictures...

Need help?

Do you have a question about Frogs that you can't find the answer to?

Consider asking it at the Wikipedia reference desk.

General images

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

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

edit

Did you know?

... that the Japanese common toad (pictured) eats certain ants and beetles that are unpalatable to other predators?
... that the small frog Kurixalus idiootocus lays its eggs on the ground and they do not hatch until rain falls?
... that the male common midwife toad (pictured), like other members of the genus Alytes, carries his eggs around with him until they hatch?
... that the Cape mountain toad is believed to be the only South African amphibian to lack a voice?
...that the Carrikeri Harlequin Frog, a critically endangered toad endemic to northern Colombia, was recently rediscovered after an absence of 14 years?