Join High Touch High Tech in celebrating
Frog Jumping Day
May 13th!
Dating back to Mark Twain’s story, “Jim Smiley and His Jumping Frog”, people have been celebrating Frog Jumping Day since 1865! But no one takes this day more seriously than the residents of Calaveras County, California! With day-long festivals and activities including the annual Frog Jumping Contest, frogs take center stage on this day, May 13th!
Frog Jumping Contest, Calaveras County, CA
Although believed by some to simply be, “slimy creatures”, frogs can perform astounding feats! Some species of frogs live only on land, some live in water, while others live in water and on land. These tailless amphibians can be found almost everywhere, but the highest population is found in tropical forests. There are nearly 5,000 different species!
So, in honor of Frog Jumping Day, we invite you to join us in discovering some of the most toad-ally cool creatures on Earth!
Top 10 Most Bizarre & Unusual Frogs on the Planet!
Tomato Frog
#10 – Tomato Frog
This frog is definitely NOT green! As colored as red ketchup, the Tomato frog’s bright color is meant to warn predators that it is not safe to eat. As a defense, these frogs secrete a gummy substance that gets in a predator’s eyes. The Tomato frog is found only in Madagascar.
Glass Frog
#9 — The Glass Frog
Glass frogs are nocturnal tree frogs that live in the humid forests of Central and South America. Their name comes from the translucent skin on the underside of their bodies. In many species the glass frogs’ internal organs, even a beating heart, can be seen. This see-through skin helps them blend into the forest.
Ornate Horned Frog
#8–The Ornate Horned Frog
This frog is nicknamed the Pac-Man frog because of its enormous mouth and insatiable appetite. They are a “sit-and-wait” ambush predator and hide well-disguised on the ground or in leaf litter. Ornate horned frogs can swallow birds, insects, mice, or even other frogs whole. This species can be found in Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil.
#7 — The Turtle Frog
Visit the Western Australia Museum to view images of this unique frog!
http://museum.wa.gov.au/explore/frogwatch/frogs/turtle-frog
This unusual-looking frog looks like a turtle that has lost its shell. It has a short, blunt snout, little beady eyes, and short, fat limbs. It lives underground and burrows in sandy soil and feeds on termite colonies. The Turtle frog only lives in the coastal plains and woodlands of extreme Southwestern Australia.
Wallace’s Flying Frog
#6 — Wallace’s Flying Frog
These frogs leap and glide from tree to tree by spreading out their huge webbed feet like parachutes. Their oversized toe pads help them stick to tree trunks and to land softly. Flying frogs inhabit the dense tropical jungles of Malaysia and Borneo.
#5 — The Pinocchio-Nose Frog
Visit National Geographic to view images of this unique frog! https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/pinocchio-frog-new-species-new-guinea
The Pinocchio-nosed frog was discovered recently during a wildlife expedition to Indonesia’s remote Foja Mountains. This long-nosed frog, a tree frog, has a spike on its nose that points upward when the male is calling but deflates and points downward when he is less active.
Pipa Toad
#4 — The Pipa or Surinam Toad
This Surinam toad is the world’s flattest amphibian—in fact, it looks like the victim of an unfortunate road accident. Yet this frog’s unusual shape helps hide it among the leaves and plant debris in the streams they inhabit in the Amazon River Basin of South America.
World’s Smallest Frog
#3 — The World’s Smallest Frog
Generally speaking, higher altitude means larger animals. But the world’s smallest known frog species lives high in the Andes Mountains of southern Peru, between 9,925 and 10,466 feet.
Goliath Frog at Harvard’s Museum of Natural History
#2 — The Goliath Frog – World’s Largest Frog
The Goliath Frog is the largest surviving specie of toads on Earth. Its size reaches 33 cm in length and it weighs up to 7lbs. This species lives mainly in western Africa, near Gabon. Goliath frogs can live up to 15 years and eat scorpions, insects and small frogs.
Poison Dart Frog
#1 — The Poisonous Dart Frog
Poison dart frogs inhabit Central and South America. Unlike most frogs, this species is active during the day and almost always has a bright-colored body. Many subspecies are in danger of extinction. American Indians used their poison for arrows and darts.
Children playing leapfrog
Now that you’ve learned a bit more about our frog friends, you know you want to jump around just like they do! So grab some friends and play a fun game of leap frog. Maybe even give us a, “ribbet” as you hop around!
And all that jumping around has got to make frogs hungry, right? Well, did you know that small frogs eat insects such as flies and moths, as well as snails, slugs, and worms? They use their long tongues and sticky saliva to catch their prey. And to smell their prey, a frog uses its special smelling organ located in the roof of its mouth. This special organ is called the Jacobson’s Organ and it helps frogs to detect food!
We invite you to complete our Bugs of Summer at-home experiment. Using your imagination, pretend you are the frog and see if you can “smell” your dinner? Grab your supplies and follow the instructions here: https://sciencemadefun.net/downloads/bugs_summer.pdf