Chapter 7

“It’s not that easy, being green.” - Kermit the Frog.

Ribbiting Frog Facts:
There are over 2000 different species of frogs and they live on every continent, with the exception of Antarctica.

Frogs don’t drink water. They absorb it through their skin.

Every species of frog has their own special mating call, made only by the male. The call has two parts. First is ‘the whine’, which the whole species uses. The second part is ‘the chuck; which is unique to the individual frog. Females listen to the chuck carefully, because the larger, more desirable, frogs make longer and deeper chucks. (Size matters!) The drawback? In some cases, bats will also listen for these chucks and might decide it is snack time.

CHOMP
A lot of frogs may look like they don’t have teeth at all, but the truth is they do, just not the same set that we humans and other animals normally have. Instead, they have vomerine teeth, which are found only on the upper jaw and in the front area of the mouth of amphibians, and due to their teeny tiny size, they are not always visible to the naked eye. Frogs teeth are not built for chewing food, but for gripping their prey with the help of their tongue. These teeth work together to aid the frog in anchoring and holding its prey in place.

Hi Mom!
The southern gastric brooding frog (Rheobatrachus silus) was discovered in 1972 in the mountains of Queensland, Australia. But the world only took notice of it in 1974 when it was discovered how it reproduced. Simply put, the mother frog converts her stomachs into a womb. The baby frogs hatch inside mommy frog, fully developed (but very small) and she spits them out. Sometimes up to 20 of them!

How many licks does it take?
We all know that some species of frogs secrete toxins, and that when humans or animals come in contact with them, can be deadly. Or in some cases, get you ‘high’ when you lick them. Before you decide to go about licking frogs from your local pond for fun, there are a few things you should know. Not every toad can get you high, and those that do will lead to drastically different results depending on the exact species. Several species of toads secrete toxins like Bufotenine that have hallucinogenic properties, but toads in the Bufonidae family seem to be the most commonly used for this purpose.

Toad licking also doesn’t necessarily have to involve getting up close and personal with these creatures. While some people will lick the back of the toad itself, others will collect the toxins that are secreted for later use.

Either way, while toad licking may lead to some desired psychoactive effects it can also be deadly. Although people are using the toxins from these toads to get high, that is not their intent. Toads will secrete these substances when they are scared or threatened to protect themselves from predators. Being poisonous, these chemicals are fast-acting and meant to severely harm or even kill any creature that attacks. There have been plenty of stories of the average dog licking cane toads and dying as a result.

While many animals have become aware of these toxic toads and do their best to avoid them, humans have taken this knowledge to a whole different level. If not fatal, licking toads can sometimes lead to interesting effects, but there are a variety of health problems that can also arise in between.

And finally, this; Q: Why does Miss Piggy douche with vinegar? A: Kermit loves to eat sweet & sour pork.