Diminishing Hoppers
Thursday, January 9, 2025
Diminishing Hoppers
Today’s special animal friend is the Paradoxical Frog, Pseudis paradoxa. Native to eastern South America and the island of Trinidad, this amphibian is also known as the Shrinking Frog. Adult paradoxical frogs are 1-1/2 to 3 inches long. They are green, brown, or some of both, depending on their habitat.
A Real Monstrosities item on them here.
The paradoxical frog and other frogs in the Pseudis genus are notable for having tadpoles that are much larger than the frog in its adult form. The largest P. paradoxa tadpole was over 11 inches long. It was found in Amapá, Brazil. This species’s mating behavior is similar to most frogs’. The males gather near a body of shallow water and call to the females.
Successful males fertilize eggs as the females lay them. After hatching, the tadpoles grow extremely rapidly. The largest tadpoles are found in large, permanent bodies of water with plenty of plant growth and no predatory fish. Tadpoles in ephemeral ponds or flooded agricultural fields are smaller and metamorphose into adult frogs in a short time.
Paradoxical frogs live in the water for their entire life cycle. Adults eat small crustaceans and a variety of insects. Natural predators include fish and birds. P. paradoxa is a species of Least Concern to IUCN. They are abundant in the areas in which they are found. Habitat loss is a threat to some populations, but their wide distribution in the Amazon basin and adjacent areas protects the species as a whole.
A peptide known as “pseudin,” derived from the frogs’ mucus, is anti-microbial and may be of use in the treatment of Type 2 diabetes, because it stimulates the production of insulin.
Paradoxical frog is also a band:
Maybe they are an acquired taste.
Good morning. It's too cold here for frogs. 22Fs with a forecast high of 38.
Good morning. As is the recent pattern, in the teens now to rise to the 20s. But the Great Light in the Sky is scheduled to make an appearance today.
The mothership is covering the downfall of Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada. FP is headlining the California fires, 2 of which are in the immediate Los Angeles area. The Pacific Palisades fire forced an FP reporter to evacuate his home; he provides a firsthand report.