You’ve got to see and hear this Desert Rain Frog! (Breviceps macrops) From Ranger Rick
March 20 is World Frog Day and April is National Frog Month, so I thought I’d write about why I love frogs!
Everything you need to know about the importance of frogs, the threats they face, and what you can do to help can fit on a single 8.5 x 11 flyer. My favorite organization, SAVE THE FROGS!, already has done just that.
As you may know, I have written and spoken extensively about these topics, including the value of pools and wetlands, and most notably, our upcoming major frog habitat improvement project—building vernal ponds in just six weeks on the last weekend of April.
While these issues are worth repeating, today, I just want to focus on how wonderful and fascinating frogs are. To know them is to love them.
A Legacy of Survival
Frogs first appeared 250 million years ago—before dinosaurs—and not only survived the asteroid collision that wiped out those colossal creatures but thrived and diversified in the aftermath.
They have weathered floods, fires, earthquakes, freezing temperatures, heat waves, hurricanes, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, and more.
Given their resilience, they likely will outlive us. If nothing else, I take comfort in knowing that, even if humans ultimately destroy themselves, I have helped create breeding places that will sustain life for thousands of years.
Nature’s Little Wonders
Diversity
According to a study from the University of Copenhagen published on October 15, 2024, seven new frog species have been discovered in Madagascar. Their high-pitched, “futuristic” whistles reminded researchers of Star Trek, inspiring them to name the species after iconic characters: Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway, Archer, Burnham, and Pike.
Amphibians are the fifth most diverse group of animals—following fish, birds, mammals, and non-avian reptiles—and, in my opinion, the cutest. Their incredible adaptability has allowed frogs to survive millennia of environmental changes and disasters. There are nearly 7,000 frog species, while only one species of human exists. And yet, that single species seems determined to destroy all the others.
Size
Smallest: Amau Forest Microhylid (Paedophryne amauensis) – only 1/3 of an inch long.
Largest: Goliath frog (Conraua goliath) – up to 13 inches long.
Color
Least colorful: African dwarf frogs (Hymenochirus)
Most colorful: Poison dart frogs (Dendrobates)
Masters of Disguise
Translucency: Glass frogs (Hyalinobatrachium valerioi)
Camouflage: Grey tree frogs (Hyla versicolor)
Playing dead: Mossy frogs (Theloderma corticale.)
Mimicry: long-nosed horned frog (Megophrys nasuta))
Chromism: Lemur tree frog (Agalychnis lemur)
Voices of the Wild
Frogs produce an astonishing variety of sounds. You can hear the first six right here in Central New York.
Croaks: Northern Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens), Green Frog (Rana clamitans)and the American Bullfrog (Bufo americanus)
Chirps: Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer)
Trills: Gray Tree Frog (Hyla versicolor) and American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus),
Screams: American Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus)
You would have to go a little further to hear these.
Barks: Barking Tree Frog (Dryophytes gratiosus)
Grunts: Pig Frog (Lithobates grylio)
Squeaks: Deaert Rain Frog (Breviceps macrops) vulnerable
Hammering: Carpenter frogs (Lithobates virgatipes)
Bleating: Sheep Frog (Hypopachus variolosus)
Whistling: Bright Eyed Frogs (Boophis)
You can choose a playlist of many of them here.
Vocal Sacs
Single Median Throat Sac: Green frog (Rana clamitans)
Paired Throat Sacs: Wood frog (Rana sylvatica)
Paired Lateral Sacs: Brazilian torrent frog (Hylodes japi)
Unique Survival Skills
Jumping: The Sharp-nosed Grass Frog (Ptychadena oxyrhynchus), just 1.8 inches long, can jump 132 inches!
Gliding: Wallace’s Flying Frog (Rhacophorus nigropalmatus) can leap up to 600 inches.
Climbing: The Horned Marsupial Frog (Gastrotheca cornuta) can scale 1,200 inches.
Natural Antifreeze: Wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) survive freezing temperatures by producing their own antifreeze.
Astonishing Reproduction Methods
- External Fertilization (Most Common): Green frog
- Internal Fertilization (Less Common): Tailed Frog (Ascaphidae),
- Live-Bearing (Rare): Nimba Toad (Nimbaphrynoides occidentalis),
- Female Skin Brooding: Surinam toad (Pipa pipa)
- Marsupial Brooding: Acanacu marsupial frog, Gastrotheca excubitor
- Male Mouth (Vocal Sac) Brooding: Darwin’s frog, (Rhinoderma darwinii),
- Female Stomach Brooding: Gastric-brooding frog (Rheobatrachus silus) extinct
For a fascinating Brazilian scientific article, read “Study extends amphibians’ known reproductive modes from 39 to 74 and creates new classification” here.
Frogs’ Importance is More Than Skin Deep
More Than Just Amphibians
In a little more than 5 minutes, this frog has changed its skin from tuberculate (spiny) to smooth, known as phenotypic plasticity. \
Frogs have thin, moist skin essential for breathing, absorbing water, and defending against pathogens, and their skin secretions contain bioactive molecules with medicinal properties, crucial to ecosystems and human well-being:
- Bioindicators: Their permeable skin makes them highly sensitive to pollution and climate change, providing an early warning for environmental distress.
- Pest control: Frogs consume vast amounts of insects, helping to prevent the spread of diseases like malaria and dengue fever.
- Medical research: Frog skin secretions contain antibacterial and antifungal compounds with potential pharmaceutical applications.
- SAVE THE FROGS! and save wetlands, forests, and freshwater environments.
April is National Frog Month
Special Thanks to
Thompson Marinho
Thompson Marinho, a former intern at A Frog House and now a PhD candidate in chemistry at UC San Diego, took a frog bug and a frog hat with him when he left last summer. He planned to wear the hat while accepting first prize for his article, AI-Assisted Proteome Comparison of Frogs and Their Friendly Bacteria in a class-wide AI and Biochemistry contest.Thompson has generously shared the link for all fellow frog enthusiasts to enjoy. I sent it first to Kerry Kriger, PhD, who completed his own thesis on chytrid fungus in Australia in 2007.
Steven Melcher
Steven Melcher, founder and president of Odanta Sanctuary kindly shared with me the March 25 E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation newsletter, Searching for Frogs in the Peruvian Amazon, which highlights the Acanacu marsupial frog (Gastrotheca excubitor), previously mentioned under reproduction.
Upcoming Events
April 18, 2025
- 10:30 AM – Brighton Memorial Library Children’s Event with Elissa Schaeffer
April 22, 2025 – Earth Day!
- 12:30 PM – Pittsford Senior Center Presentation
- 5:00 – 7:00 PM – Pittsford Community Center Celebration
- 6:30 PM – Zonta Underpass Bar & Grill Event (Fairport)
April 25-27, 2025
- 9:00 AM – 5 PM Save The Frogs Day Pond Building at Robert C. Corby Arboretum & Wildlife Sanctuary (liner laying at about noon each day)
Get Involved!
Buy Something
We will have a 10 year anniversary of our calendar, as well as new softcover and hardcover versions of Froggy Family’s First Frolic sometime in mid June or sooner. You can pre-order now for a June delivery, and/or come by A Frog House the first weekend in May to see our other books and frogabilia.
All proceeds go to our mission of Advocacy, Collaboration and Education to result in conservation projects
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Join Us on April 25, 26, 27 to Build Wetlands
As spring arrives, listen for the comforting calls of frogs. Better yet, join efforts to restore their habitat! The Town and Village of Pittsford, SAVE THE FROGS!, Wetland Restoration and Training, A Frog House, and Friends of the Arboretum—along with other passionate individuals—are working to build more spaces for frogs and other wildlife.
Register here.
