Continue reading “Camouflage # 23: Can you find the animal?”
Tag frog
See-through Glass Frog hides its blood
People can see the beating heart of the see-through Glass Frog. But, its blood is less visible. Scientists have recently discovered why. The Glass Frog hides its blood in its liver when it sleeps.
The Glass Frog (Hyalinobatrachium yaku) and the Fleischmann’s Glass Frog (Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni) live in the tropical, dense Amazonian lowlands of Ecuador.
The size of a marshmallow, the amphibians are called Glass Frogs because their skin is translucent and transparent (see-through). Jesse Delia at the American Museum of Natural History in New York said to the New Scientist LIFE magazine in 2022, “If it wasn’t for that green skin on their back, you would probably be able to read a newspaper through them.”
Continue reading “See-through Glass Frog hides its blood”Can animals live in ice?
Can animals live in ice?
There are animals that live on the ice and under the ice, but are there animals that can live in the ice?
Ice is frozen water. Sea ice is less compact than freshwater ice. Sea ice, freshwater river ice, and pond ice have specific thicknesses – the ice floats on the surface of the water and it does not extend to the bottom of the water. This means that animals can live under the ice.
Continue reading “Can animals live in ice?”RESEARCH: Three factors why big-eyed frogs have big eyes
In September 2020, the New Scientist magazine reported on research to determine why frogs have evolved big eyes.
Some frogs have the biggest eyes of all vertebrates (animals with backbones), in relation to their body size, and zoologists did not know why. Now researchers have found that the size of the eyes of these vertebrates seems to depend upon their environment.
Eyesight requires a lot of energy to function – focusing, adjusting peripheral vision, calculating distance, determing what the object is, and so on. There is a lot of things the eye must do quickly to ‘see’ what is in front and around it. Scientists think this is why animals living in dark environments, such as caves, often evolve to have smaller eyes.
Continue reading “RESEARCH: Three factors why big-eyed frogs have big eyes”Tadpole of the Caucasian Parsley Frog
The Caucasian Parsley Frog (Pelodytes caucasicus) is a freshwater amphibian in the Pelodytidae family of frogs.
The Caucasian Parsley Frog begins its life as an egg. The adult female frog is oviparous, laying eggs. The female lays 40-300 eggs near reeds in a still body of water. The eggs hatch after about 14 days.
The eggs hatch into tadpoles.
Continue reading “Tadpole of the Caucasian Parsley Frog”Pool Frog
The Pool Frog (Pelophylax lessonae) is a freshwater wetlands amphibian in the Ranidae family of water frogs.
The Pool Frog is green, olive or brown. On its back is a green line that runs from head to tail. There are small warts on its back. Its underbelly is creamy-white. It has a plump body with long hind (back) legs, and no tail. It has large, round, protruding eyes. It has webbed feet.
Continue reading “Pool Frog”Kokoe Poison Frog
The Kokoe Poison Frog (Phyllobates aurotaenia) is an amphibian in the Dendrobatidae family of poison dart frogs.
The adult Kokoe Poison Frog is black with green, yellow, orange, or brownish stripes on its back. It has a black abdomen with blue or green dots.
Continue reading “Kokoe Poison Frog”Tadpole of the Phantasmal Poison Frog
The Phantasmal Poison Frog (Epipedobates tricolor) is an endangered amphibian in the Dendrobatidae family of Poison Dart Frogs.
The Phantasmal Poison Frog begins its life as an egg. The adult female frog is oviparous, laying eggs. The female lays 10-30 eggs, which hatch after about 14 days. The male cares for the eggs.
The eggs hatch into tadpoles, and the male carries them on his back and takes them to a river or stream.
Continue reading “Tadpole of the Phantasmal Poison Frog”Young African Clawed Frogs regenerate lost and damaged tails and limbs
Young African Clawed Frogs regenerate lost and damaged tails and limbs. Adult African Clawed Frogs also regenerate their lost limbs, but the newly regenerated limb is often not fully functional.
The African Clawed Frog (Xenopus laevis) is an aquatic, freshwater amphibian in the Pipidae family of tongueless frogs. It is also known as the African Clawed Toad, or the African Claw-Toed Frog. It grows to 10-13 centimetres (4-5 inches) in length.
Continue reading “Young African Clawed Frogs regenerate lost and damaged tails and limbs”Diablito Frog
The Diablito Frog (Oophaga sylvatica) is a small venomous amphibian in the Dendrobatidae family of poison dart frogs.
The Diablito Frog varies in colour, from red and yellow to orange. The female has circular, round toe discs or pads that can stick to surfaces, whereas the male has heart-shaped toe discs. The female has an arched back, and the male has a curved back.
Continue reading “Diablito Frog”European Tree Frog
The European Tree Frog (Hyla arborea) is a small amphibian in the Hylidae family of tree frogs.
The European Tree Frog is a light green, slender frog, with a slightly flattened, smooth body. It can also be greyish, olive-green, or tan coloured. It has lightly mottled markings, often with four faint lines or distinctive white spots. It has bulging eyes at the side of its head. Its long hind feet are webbed with cushioned pads. The male has a golden-brown throat and the female has a white throat.
Continue reading “European Tree Frog”WHAT ANIMAL IS THIS? #11
Photographer: Martina Nicolls
Continue reading “WHAT ANIMAL IS THIS? #11”What is a group of frogs called?
What is a group of frogs called?
A group of frogs is called an army of frogs, or a colony of frogs.
Continue reading “What is a group of frogs called?”Dyeing Poison Dart Frog
The Dyeing Poison Dart Frog (Denrobates tinctorius) is a poisonous amphibian in the poison dart frog family.
The Dyeing Poison Dart Frog varies in colour. Its body is usually black with irregular patterns and stripes in yellow or white along its sides, back, chest, head, and belly. Its legs are mainly blue—either dark-blue or light-blue—with small, black dots. The female has circular, round toe discs or pads (that can stick to surfaces), whereas the male has heart-shaped toe discs. The female has an arched back, and the male has a curved back.
Continue reading “Dyeing Poison Dart Frog”Toe Pads of Tree Frogs
A Tree Frog (an arboreal frog) has sticky toe pads on each of its four toes.
The toe pads are not suction pads. The toe pads function through wet adhesion.
The surface of each toe pad has flat-topped, hexagonal-shaped (six-sided) cells, with grooves, that grip surfaces. This is called an intercalary structure.
Continue reading “Toe Pads of Tree Frogs”
What is a Tadpole?
What is a tadpole?
A tadpole is the aquatic larval stage in the life cycle of an amphibian, such as a frog or toad. Tadpole means ‘toad head.’
A tadpole has a grey, laterally-compressed body and tail, with internal or external gills to enable it to breathe underwater, and a mouth to eat algae.
Continue reading “What is a Tadpole?”CREATURE FEATURE: Golden Mantella Frog
The Golden Mantella Frog (Mantella aurantiaca) is a small poisonous amphibian in the Mantellidae family.
The Golden Mantella Frog is yellow, orange, or red. Its inner leg has red flash markings.
Continue reading “CREATURE FEATURE: Golden Mantella Frog”Australian Green Tree Frog
The Australian Green Tree Frog (Litoria caerulea) is a large, arboreal amphibian in the Hylidae family. It is also known as the White’s Tree Frog or the Dumpy Tree Frog.
The Australian Green Tree Froghas a plump body with a ridge over its eyes. It is emerald or bright green with yellow or white blotches on its back. It has a cream underbelly, and the undersides of its feet and legs are bright yellow. Its eyes have horizontal golden pupils.
Continue reading “Australian Green Tree Frog”African Clawed Frog
The African Clawed Frog (Xenopus laevis) is an aquatic, freshwater amphibian in the Pipidae family of tongueless frogs. It is also known as the African Clawed Toad or the African Claw-Toed Frog.
The African Clawed Frog is greenish-grey with olive-green markings, but albino (white) frogs are common. It has smooth, slippery skin. Its underbelly is creamy-white. It has three short claws on each hind (back) foot. It has webbed feet only on its back feet. Its back legs are very powerful. It front legs have long fingers. It has eyes, with red pupils, on the top of its head. It has a curved, flat nose.
Continue reading “African Clawed Frog”Yellow-Banded Poison Dart Frog
The Yellow-Banded Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates leucomelas) is an endangered poisonous freshwater amphibian. It is also known as the Bumblebee Poison Frog.
The Yellow-Banded Poison Dart Frog has smooth skin with bright-yellow and black markings, such as stripes and spots. It has large dark eyes. It has webbed feet with one digit (toe) longer than the others. Its toes have sticky pads to help it climb trees.
Continue reading “Yellow-Banded Poison Dart Frog”