#frog science

[frog-ology-secondary]

hello tumblr I’m a frog scientist and I heard you like frogs here so I’m here to share frog content if that’s okay

my first contribution is to inform you all that Carl Linnaeus hated frogs. Like, really hated them:

"These foul and loathsome animals are abhorrent because of their cold body, pale color, cartilaginous skeleton, filthy skin, fierce aspect, calculating eye, offensive smell, harsh voice, squalid habitation, and terrible venom; and so their Creator has not exerted his powers to make more of them." - Carl Linnaeus, Systema Naturae 1758 (Translated from Latin)

idk what went down between Linnaeus and a frog but dude was traumatised

also here is a photo of one of my science frogs, his name is Granny

[idescribefrogsnthings]

[ID: photo of an orange tree frog nestled in a white flower surrounded by other leaves. The frog has red eyes, orange skin with a blue belly, and appears long and thin. /End ID]

This Brazilian frog might be the first pollinating amphibian known to science

Nectar-loving tree frog likely moves pollen from flower to flower

The creamy fruit and nectar-rich flowers of the milk fruit tree are irresistible to Xenohyla truncata, a tree frog native to Brazil. On warm nights, the dusky-colored frogs take to the trees en masse, jostling one another for a chance to nibble the fruit and slurp the nectar. In the process, the frogs become covered in sticky pollen grains—and might inadvertently pollinate the plants, too. It’s the first time a frog—or any amphibian—has been observed pollinating a plant, researchers reported last month in Food Webs.

Scientists long thought only insects and birds served as pollinators, but research has revealed that some reptiles and mammals are more than up to the task. Now, scientists must consider whether amphibians are also capable of getting the job done. It’s likely that the nectar-loving frogs, also known as Izecksohn’s Brazilian tree frogs, are transferring pollen as they move from flower to flower, the authors say. But more research is needed, they add, to   confirm that frogs have joined the planet’s pantheon of pollinators.

Source.

[markscherz]

Meet the seven new frog species we just named after iconic Star Trek captains!

Artwork by A. Petzold, CC BY-ND 4.0

At the right time of year along rushing streams in the humid rainforests that stretch the length of Madagascar's eastern and northern mountain ridges, otherworldly trills of piercing whistles can be heard.

Are they birds? Insects? Communicator beeps? Tricorder noises?

No, they're little treefrogs!

Boophis janewayae. Photo by M. Vences, CC BY-SA 4.0

Until recently, we thought all of the populations of these little brown frogs across the island were one widespread species, Boophis marojezensis, described in 1994. But genetics in the early 2000s and 2010s showed that there were several species here, not just one.

Now my colleagues and I have shown that they are in fact eight separate species, each with unique calls!

These whistling sounds reminded us so much of Star Trek sound effects that we decided to name the seven new species after Star Trek captains: Boophis kirki, B. picardi, B. janewayae, B. siskoi, B. pikei, B. archeri, and B. burnhamae.

Photos of all new species described by Vences et al. 2024. CC BY-SA 4.0

I subtly and not-so-subtly built some Star Trek references into the paper, but probably the best one is this one:

'Finding these frogs sometimes requires considerable trekking; pursuing strange new calls, to seek out new frogs in new forests; boldly going where no herpetologist has gone before.'

— Vences et al. 2024

There’s a real sense of scientific discovery and exploration here, which we think is in the spirit of Star Trek.

Of course, it doesn't hurt that there are at least two Trekkies amongst the authors (including yours truly). As fans of Star Trek, we are also just pleased to dedicate these new species to the characters who have inspired and entertained us over the decades.

On a personal note, this marks a milestone for me, as it means I have now described over 100 frog species! I am very pleased that the 100th is Captain Janeway's Bright-eyed Frog, Boophis janewayae (if you count them in order of appearance in the paper)—she is probably my favourite captain, and I really love Star Trek: Voyager.

You can read more about the discovery of these new species on my website! You can also read the Open Access paper published in Vertebrate Zoology here.

[zegalba]

a glass frog's underside

[toadbreath]

i often think about that deep diving expedition where a toad was caught on camera at the bottom of loch ness

i wonder how he’s doing

[frogposting]

Atrato Glass Frog / Sun Glassfrog photographed by nuqui_herping

[typhlonectes]

Vintage newspaper article

[destiel-news-channel]

[Image ID: The Destiel confession meme edited so that Dean answers 'Seven 'Star Trek' frog species have been found!' to Cas' 'I love you'. /End ID]

The species have been named after seven Star Trek captains for their "'Star Trek'-esque calls'. Their high-pitched whistling sounds are reminiscent of 'Star Trek' sound effects like the Tricorder noises.

source link

Please welcome Boophis kirki, Boophis picardi, Boophis siskoi, Boophis janewayae, Boophis archeri, Boophis pikei, and Boophis burnhamae! Good to know scientists are just as nerdy as we all are.

[miakoenigspython]

I don’t know what’s better. The adorable and funny names for these frogs, the fact that the guy that named them, answered. On TUMBLR! Or that his last name literally translates to “joke” or “jest” in German.

OR that Dr. Scherz has a website, where you can read more about him and his research and buy adorable frog stickers!!!

here is the link: http://www.markscherz.com

thank you scherz et al. for bringing us the frogs Mini ature, Mini mum and of course, the Mini scule

[alithographica]

Big day for nerds and frog enjoyers, get a load of this new chunk: Hyloscirtus tolkieni

(Article has a few more photos)

[spider-artdump]

Spallanzi taught frogs about non-procreative sex. These frogs are burning in Hell, and it is the fault of Lazzaro Spallanzani.

[hellsitegenetics]

I got a pet pac-man frog recently and for the life of me I cannot come up with a good name for them, so I'm gonna roll the BLAST dice and see what comes up from this :D

Their too young to sex for now, and they're a coffee morph (Which means their much more brown and less green than normal), and I love them dearly already

They're still pretty small, so they're in a small little plastic container for now until they grow big enough to be in the 20 gallon-long tank I have

String identified: gt a t ac-a g ct a t cat c t a g a t, ' ga t AT c a at c t : T t g t , a t' a c (c a t c a g ta a), a t a aa T' t tt a, t' a a tt atc cta t t g g g t t ga-g ta a

Closest match: Pterostichus madidus genome assembly, chromosome: 8 Common name: Black Clock Beetle

(image source)

[considernature]

Hey kid

Time to learn about tomato frogs.

This weird frog blows up like a balloon and makes glue. Click below to learn more:

[markscherz]

Peer-reviewed instructions for coping with a Bad Day™:

[src]

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Frogs eat insects, right? And sometimes other invertebrates, and maybe little vertebrates like tiny fish or tadpoles or smaller frogs. But this is one of those neat cases where you have a total departure from what's expected.

While Xenohyla truncata (aka "Izecksohn's Brazilian tree frog") does eat some invertebrate prey, it also deliberately seeks out fruit. Given that it lives high in the canopy of the rain forest amid bromeliads, it's not out of the realm of possibility that this started out as supplementing a normal frog diet with high-calorie fruit in tough times, and evolution favored those that were able to make better nutritional use of this opportunity.

It reminds me of the (mostly) vegetarian spider Bagheera kiplingi, and how primarily herbivorous ungulates like horses and deer will opportunistically eat baby birds or gnaw on carrion and bones. While we can make generalizations about the dietary habits of certain groups of animals, there are exceptions to every rule. And I personally find the existence of these unique outliers to be part of what makes the natural world so utterly fascinating--no matter how much we learn, there are always more surprises to discover.

[amnhnyc]

Feeling devilish? You might relate to the long-nosed horned frog (Pelobatrachus nasutus). The “horns” or growths on this species’ head help it disappear among leaf litter on the forest floor, as it hides from foes and waits for passing prey. This amphibian can be found in parts of Asia including Sumatra, Borneo, and Thailand. It can grow up to 4.7 in (12 cm) long, and its call has been described as a loud, metallic “honk.”

Photo: Pavel Kirillov, CC BY-SA 2.0, flickr