All about Frogs I

Picture of African Bullfrog

Frogs are a kind of small animal belonging to a group called vertebrates (animals with backbones) known as amphibians. This mean that they live part of their life in water and the other part of it on land. The word amphibian comes from 2 Greek words, "amphi" which means "both" and "bios" which means "life". Amphibians are cold-blooded animals. This mean that their body temperature is the same as the surrounding temperature. Their skin absorbs water into their body so they do not have to drink water to survive. Frogs have strong hind legs to enable them leap forward at a great distance. The front legs or arms are short. They are used to prop the frog up when it sits.

The largest frog is the giant or Goliath Frog of West Central Africa (picture on the right) It can grow up to more than 1 ft long (30 cm). The smallest is the Cuban Pygmy frog which is about 1/2 inch long (1.3 cm) only. The largest frog in America is the Bullfrog. It can grow up to more than 6 inches long.

Picture of world's smallest frog - Brachycephalus eohippus - This little frog has only half an inch !

Frogs are special. They can breathe by means of the lungs and also through their skin. This is because of the way their heart is formed. It has 3 chambers instead of the normal 4.

Frogs can be found almost anywhere except the Antartica. However, most species are found in tropical regions. More frogs are found in warmer countries. You can find frogs in water or near places that have water like ponds and streams.



Picture of a frog in water

However, some frogs will never enter the water. They live mainly on land and go to the water only to mate. Then, there are some kinds that live in trees. These frogs have tiny sticky pads on their fingers and toes to help them cling to the tree trunk as they climb. Some frogs are burrowers. Burrower frogs live on land and have short hind legs and cannot hop. Frogs that live in cold winter places, hibernate during this time. They hibernate either in burrows or burried in mud bottom of ponds.


Picture of Webbed feet of the frog
Frogs also have webbed feet for swimming. Some have suction disks on the tip of their toes to help them climb. The back feet of the Spade-Foot toad has a special hard spur to make it easier for burrowing.



Picture of Red-eyed Gliding Tree Frog

Some have large webs to assist them in gliding in the air, almost like flying. Examples : The Chinese Gliding Tree Frog, Asian Blue-Webbed Gliding Tree Frog The spines on the males' front feet help them to grip on the female during mating.