Results: Tomato Frogs

(Source Arkive.org) Tomato frogs (Dyscophus antongilii) live up to their name by possessing a vibrant, orange-red color. Females are much larger than males and have brighter tones of red or orange on their back, with a pale undersurface. Some individuals also have black spots on the throat. It is thought that the brilliant colors of the tomato frog act as a warning to potential predators that these frogs are toxic; a white substance secreted from the skin acts as a glue to deter predators (such as colubrid snakes) and can produce an allergic reaction in humans. If you find such a colorful frog, would you try to touch it?

Endemic to Madagascar, tomato frogs are found in the northeast of the island around Antongil Bay (from which they gain their specific name, antongilii), and south to Andevoranto. Have you ever been to Madagascar?

Tomato frogs breed in February to March following heavy rainfall; the sounds of males calling to attract females can be heard around small water bodies in the dark Malagasy night. Following copulation, females will lay a clutch of 1,000 to 15,000 eggs on the surface of the water. Tadpoles hatch from these small black and white eggs about 36 hours later; they are only around six millimeters long and feed by filter-feeding. Tadpoles undergo metamorphosis into yellow juveniles and this stage is completed around 45 days after the eggs were laid. Did you know that their eggs could hatch so fast?

Ambushing potential prey, adult tomato frogs feed on small invertebrates. When threatened, these frogs can inflate themselves, giving the appearance of greater size. Are there any similar frogs in your area?