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 Wildville!
The Frog
Frogs
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
The frog is an amphibian, meaning that it spends part of its life underwater and part of it on land. Frogs spend their life near the water. They must return to the water to lay their eggs. When the eggs hatch into tadpoles, they breathe with gills and swim using a tail. As they grow, they develop lungs for breathing air, sprout legs and lose their tail. When a frog is completely grown, it has long hind legs, a short body, protruding eyes and no tail. Frogs are cold-blooded, meaning that their body temperatures change with the temperature of their surroundings.
There are over 5000 species of frogs. Most frogs have smooth, moist skin, but toads have dry, warty skin and live on land. Oxygen can pass through the moist skin of frogs, so they can breathe through their skin. They also absorb water through their skin so they dont need to drink. The eyes and nose of a frog are on top of its head so it can breathe and see when the rest of its body is underwater. Many frogs, especially the ones that live in water, have webbed toes. Some frogs who climb trees have toe pads that help grip. Some frogs that live high in trees will also have some webbing which helps them parachute as they leap through the tree branches.
Many frogs are nocturnal, which means they are awake at night and sleep during the day. Frogs are also camouflaged to protect them from predators. Some frogs can even change colors, but only a shade or two. Another thing that protects some frogs is that they taste bad to other animals that might want to eat them. Frogs have toxins which are responsible for the bad taste. Some frogs are very toxic, or poisonous. Frogs make a loud sound, or call, to attract mates. Some frogs make a deep sound, or croak, sometimes heard as ribbit.
Frogs are carnivorous, meaning they eat meat. They eat insects, small fish and worms. Frogs can be found all over the world, except on Antarctica and some islands. A variety of species is found in tropical areas. Frogs that live in cold environments usually dig deep holes and bury themselves in the ground for the winter (called hibernation).
Sources: Wikipedia, Frog. The Exploratorium, at www.exploratorium.edu/frogs.
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