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Goliath frog Facts

Goliath frog Facts
Goliath frog is the largest frog in the world. This frog can be found only in the restricted areas in Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea. Goliath frog inhabits fast-flowing rivers and streams with sandy bottoms that are typical for humid, dense rainforests. Number of Goliath frogs in the wild is decreasing due to accelerated habitat loss (due to deforestation), hunting (their meat is popular source of food for some African tribes) and over-collecting from the wild (due to pet trade). Thanks to all these factors, Goliath frog is listed as endangered animal.
Interesting Goliath frog Facts:
Goliath frog can reach 12.5 inches in length and 7.2 pounds of weight (like domestic cat or a newborn baby). Unlike most species of frogs, males are larger than females.
Dorsal side of the body of Goliath frog is covered with green colored skin that has granular texture. Underside of the body is yellow-orange colored.
3. Goliath frog has webbed feet and elongated second toe. Unlike other frogs, Goliath frogs do not possess nuptial pad (swelling on the forearms of males which facilitate grasping of females during mating ritual).
Goliath frog is able to leap 10 feet.
Goliath frogs have large eyes and acute sense of hearing, but they do not possess vocal cords and cannot produce sounds during the mating season.
Goliath frogs are nocturnal animals (active during the night).
Diet of Goliath frog depends on the developmental stage. Tadpoles are herbivores (plant eaters). Their diet is based on the plant called Dicraeia warmingii which grows only in the Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea. This (specialized) type of diet permits survival of Goliath frogs only in the restricted areas in the wild. Adult Goliath frogs are carnivores. They eat locusts, dragonflies, crabs, small snakes, fish, baby turtles and other amphibians.
Goliath frogs are able to catch and eat bats (discovered after examination of the stomach's content of captured Goliath frog).
Main predators of Goliath frogs are snakes, Nile crocodiles and large lizards such as Nile monitors.
Mating season of Goliath frogs takes place from July to August.
Males create semi-circular pools near the riverbanks using the gravel and rocks. They wrestle to establish dominance and gain opportunity to mate.
Female lays hundreds of eggs, attached to the vegetation on the sandy bottom of the rivers. Parents do not protect eggs against predators (they are left on their own). Tadpoles hatch from the eggs. They are miniature, just like the tadpoles of other frog species.
After 85 to 95 days tadpoles transform into fully developed Goliath frogs. Researchers estimate that Goliath frogs reach sexual maturity at the age of 10 to 12 months.
Goliath frogs hardly reproduce and rarely survive in the captivity.
Goliath frogs can survive 15 years in the wild and up to 21 years in the captivity.


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