Kid's Activity: From Tadpole to Frog

Phyllobates terribilis -- Golden Poison Dart Frog
The skin secretion of the golden poison dart frog of western Colombia (reputedly the deadliest creature in the world with enough poison in it to kill 10 humans) is one of the most poisonous substances known to man. The alkaloid poisons in the skins of poison dart frogs -- called batrachotoxins -- are not made by the frogs themselves but by their prey. Some frogs simply store their prey toxins in their skins, but others, like the golden poison dart frog, may metabolize them to produce even more toxic forms. Poison dart frogs tend to become specialists in the specific insects -- mostly ants-- that make the toxins they store. When fed fruit flies they tend to lose their toxicity and are popular pets.

To some South American Indian tribes these little frogs are most useful. They catch a number and put them close to a fire. As soon as the frogs start to become hot they exude a kind of slime from their bodies, which the Indians scrape off and collect. This slime prepared in special way, is a most potent poison, and the Indians use it to dip the tips of their arrows in. Thus, when the arrow strikes an animal - even a quite powerful one, like a wild pig - the poison works very rapidly and kills the beast.

Conraua goliath -- African Goliath Frog
The world's largest frog is the African goliath frog, which is about the size of a rabbit. It reaches a body length of 12 inches and overall length from nose to toe of about 3 feet; specimens in excess of 3.2 kg (7 lb) have been collected. lives exclusively along isolated rivers in the rain forests of Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea, where it's embedded in local folklore (Mbo tribesmen believe the frogs are wizards of sacred waterfalls)

Osteocephalus oophagus -- Female Tree Frog
Instead of in a pond, the female tree frog of Brazil lays her eggs in a bromeliad plant which has become filled with water. It's in the rainforest, so the leaves don't dry off. As the tadpoles grow and develop, she returns every 5 to 7 days to lay more eggs for them to eat! The larvae feed on eggs provided by their parents; larvae not provided with eggs die. The first eggs develop into tadpoles and later clutches of fertilized eggs serve as food.

Trichobatrachus robustus -- African Hairy Frog
The male hairy frog of west Africa is covered in dermal (hair-like) extensions. This frog has small lungs and during breeding seasons the males get hair like projections on their back legs. This is because of the high oxygen needs at this time. While frogs have lungs, they can also breath through their skin, with tiny blood vessels, capillaries, under the outer skin layers.

Neat frog facts

We've all heard of it "raining cats and dogs" and simply think it's a figure of speech. From Biblical times to recent days, accounts of raining frogs have amazed and confuzzled listeners. Did you know the stories of raining frogs are actually true? Such events are caused when a wind storm passes over a pond or lake teaming with frogs, scooping them up and dropping them elsewhere.

Frogs live near water. Right? Well, most of the time...but frogs also live in deserts. The Australian water-holding frog is a desert dweller that can wait up to seven years for rain. It burrows underground and surrounds itself in a transparent cocoon made of its own shed skin.

Medicine from frogs? Perhaps! Scientists have recently discovered that the poisons secreted by the poison-arrow frog (Dendrobates tinctorius) of South America can also be used to block pain in humans.

If you are afraid of frogs, you suffer from ranidaphobia.