What Do Frogs Eat? Over 4,700 species of frogs exist in the animal kingdom. These tiny creatures are classified as amphibians (Order: Anura) thanks to the fact that they live partly on land and partly in the water.
These naturally and beautifully painted organisms are carnivorous, given that they eat live preys. Their diet mainly constitutes insects, clams and other small animals with examples of earthworms and spiders.
Table of Contents
What Do Frogs Eat?
Tomato Frog | Insects, worms, and larvae |
Goliath Frog | Larvae, small frogs, insects, fish, salamanders, crustaceans, small mammals, and mollusks |
Amazon Milk Frog | Crickets |
Red-eyed Tree Frog | Crickets, moths, and flies |
Pacman Frog | Insects, mice, worms, fish, other frogs, and smaller reptiles |
Mantellas and Dart Frog | Ants and termites |
Green Tree Frog | Crickets, worms, and earthworms |
Frog Diet by Types
As was earlier noted, a spectacular range of frog species lives on the earth. The types of frogs that will be discussed in this section are a selected few, most of which can be found on the tropics given that a majority of the frog species live on the world’s renown tropical rainforests.
What Do Tomato Frogs Eat?
Animalia | Anura | Microhylidae | Dyscophus | Dyscophus antongilii |
Tomato frogs feed on insects, worms, and larvae.
Tomato frog looks like a ripe tomato from a distance. The brightest and most significant members of this species are females. Its native habitat is the tropical rainforests, mainly those in Madagascar.
What Do Goliath Frogs Eat?
Animalia | Anura | Petropedetidae | Conraua | Conraua goliath |
Goliath frogs consume a rich diet consisting of larvae, small frogs, insects, fish, salamanders, crustaceans, small mammals, and mollusks.
Goliath frog is the most giant frog on the face of the earth. Their habitat includes regionslarvae,terfalls and fast-flowing rivers located in humid and dense rainforests. Interestingly, their habitat is also determined by the availability of larvae, which is their typical delicacy.
What Do Amazon Milk Frogs Eat?
Animalia | Anura | Hylidae | Trachycephalus | Trachycephalus resinifictrix |
Amazon Milk frogs feed on small invertebrates such as crickets.
Amazon Milk frogs get their name from the white sticky substance they secrete via their skin when they are faced with immense danger. This type of frogs is commonly found in tropical rainforests .
What Do Red-eyed Tree Frogs Eat?
Animalia | Anura | Hylidae | Agalychnis | Agalychnis callidryas |
Red-eyed Tree frogs enjoy a carnivorous diet by feeding on insects (crickets, moths, and flies).
Red-eyed Tree frog has unique colorful adaptations that are helpful in the event of danger. Their habitat mainly constitutes the tropical lowlands.
What Do Pacman Frogs Eat?
Animalia | Anura | Ceratophryidae | Ceratophrys | Ceratophrys cranwelli |
Pacman frogs consume a varied diet consisting of insects, mice, worms, fish, other frogs, and smaller reptile members.
There are Eight species of Pacman frogs exist. They are commonly found in humid and warm environments, especially in the tropical rainforests and swampy environs.
What Do Mantellas and Dart Frogs Eat?
Animalia | Anura | Dendrobatidae | Ranitomeya | Ranitomeya amazonica |
Mantellas and Dart frogs mainly feed on insects, especially the ants and termites. They concentrate their poison from eating ants.
Mantellas and Dart frogs secrete substances through their skin, some of which are very toxic and can kill. Their habitat is mainly the tropical rainforests of South America.
What Do Green Tree Frogs Eat?
Animalia | Anura | Hylidae | Hyla | Hyla cinerea |
Green tree frogs commonly feed on live proteins with examples of crickets, worms, and earthworms.
The green tree frog is commonly found in Australia’s wet tropical region, especially the country’s wet tropical forests.
How do Frogs Hunt?
Interestingly, most frogs do not go about hunting for their prey.
- Instead, they wait for their prey to come closer to them for them to launch an attack.
- When their prey comes close enough, they grab it with the help of their sticky tongues.
- They then envelop the prey with their mouths and then proceed to consume it live. When eating their prey, they close their eyes to facilitate the swallowing process.
When do Frogs Eat?
Most frog species are nocturnal, and will thus tend to find it much easier to catch their prey and consume it in the dark of the night. Diurnal frog species will tend to eat during the day.
How Often Do Frogs Eat?
Given that they are cold-blooded, frogs do not need to eat food very often to promote their metabolism.
What Eats Frogs?
Frogs have numerous predators. The examples of animals that feed on a frog diet include but are not limited to snakes, lizards, birds (such as Adelaide’s Warbler, Greater Antillean Grackle and more), weasels, hedgehogs, and carnivorous fish species.
Where Do Frogs fit in the Animal Food Chain?
In their life cycles, frogs play an instrumental role in the animal food chain as prey and predators. They are a cardinal food source to the animals which feed on them. They also feed on other small animals and insects, thus regulating instances of overpopulation.
Like any other animal in the food chain, the extinction of frogs in the ecosystem would disturb the balance and order in the animal food chain.