Frog Facts

About the frog

Anura comes from Ancient Greek for without tail. Frogs with bumpy, warty skin often get called toads, but that split is informal and says nothing about how they are related. Frogs live from the tropics to subarctic regions, with the most species packed into tropical rainforests and nearby wetlands. The oldest proto-frog fossil, Triadobatrachus, comes from Madagascar about 250 million years ago.

Adults have stout bodies, bulging eyes, a tongue attached at the front and legs folded underneath. Their skin produces secretions that range from bad-tasting to toxic. Colors run from camouflage browns, grays and greens to bright red or yellow with black, a warning to predators. Because the skin lets water through, frogs either stay in damp places or have special tricks for drier homes. They also call a lot, especially in breeding season.

Did you know?

• Of all vertebrate orders, frogs rank in the top five for diversity.
• The tail of the so-called tailed frog is an extension of the male's cloaca.
• Molecular dating suggests frogs may have split from other amphibians in the Permian, 265 million years ago.