Frogs | Anura
Anura, comprised of frogs or toads, is the most diverse of the three existing amphibian orders. There is no formal distinction between frogs and toads, just that toads are typically a more warty frog species. Frogs live in every biome except in extremely dry deserts and polar regions, however, their species diversity is most abundant in the tropics. Frogs are typically carnivores though some eat fruit, and all adult frogs, except one species, do not have tails—thus where the the name Anura, meaning “without tail,” came from. There are about 4,000 different species of frogs with the earliest known fossils dating back to the Jurassic period.
Frogs are carnivores. A smaller frog’s diet consists of insects like flies, mosquitoes, moths, spiders, and dragonflies. Larger frogs also eat insects like grasshoppers, butterflies, and worms, and may even eat small snakes, mice, baby turtles, and other smaller frogs.
Frogs reproduce by the male and female frog getting into the mating posture, amplexus, to make sure the eggs become fertilized. Egg fertilization happens outside of the female’s body when she releases her eggs and the male releases his sperm at the same time. The eggs are then placed in water and will hatch into tadpoles which later become frogs.
In almost all frog species it is the males that croak and they do so to attract female frogs. Males frogs tend to croak while they are in or near a water source (ponds, dams, streams, or wetlands) with the intention of mating. Each frog species has a different croak and can be identified by it.
