Portal:Frogs

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The Frogs Portal

Red-eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas)

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, and does not reflect 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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Frog legs (French: Cuisses de grenouille) are the muscular hindlimbs of frogs that are consumed as food by humans in some cuisines. Frog legs are rich in protein, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin A, and potassium. They are often said to taste like chicken because of the mild flavor, with a texture most similar to chicken wings. The taste and texture of frog meat are approximately between chicken and fish. Frog muscles do not resolve rigor mortis as quickly as skeletal muscles from warm-blooded animals (chicken, for example) do, so heat from cooking can cause fresh frog legs to twitch.

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

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Did you know?

... that the female common rocket frog (pictured carrying tadpoles) and the male rainforest frog Colostethus stepheni are both involved in the parental care of their young?

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