Morgan Baskin, age 12, of Gulfport, miss., for his question:
IF THERE A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A FROG AND A TOAD?
Frogs are related to toads but differ from them in a number of ways. Both frogs and toads make up the order Salientia, or Anura, one of the three main groups of amphibians. Most zoologists divide this order into at least 13 families of living frogs and toads.
One family of salientians consist of true frogs. True toads make up another family.
Most true toads have a broader, flatter body and darker, drier skin than do most true frogs. True toads are commonly covered with warts, but true frogs have smooth skin.
Unlike most true frogs, the majority of true toads live on land. The adults go to water only to breed.
Toads range from one to nine inches in length. But most toads are from about two to five inches long. They have shorter legs than frogs and are generally more clumsy.
The toad has a tongue one inch long that is attached at the front of the mouth. The tongue has a sticky surface. A toad flips its tongue at its prey in a quick rolling motion. It catches its prey on the sticky surface and draws its tongue back into its mouth. Some scientists believe that the tongue can also be used to grab food without the use of the sticky surface. The tongue moves so fast that it cannot easily be seen.
Largest frog around is the Goliath of west central Africa. It grows to be 12 inches long. The smallest species grow to be only one half inch long.
Like the toad, the frog has a sticky tongue.
True frogs live on every continent except Antarctica. They are most common in Africa. About 20 kinds of true frogs live in the United States and Canada. The bullfrog, which may grow to be eight inches long, ranks as the largest American and Canadian frog.
Like frogs, toads can found in almost every part of the world.
A female frog will lay several thousand eggs while the female toad will lay 20,000.
Only a few of the many frog and toad eggs develop into adults. Ducks, fish, insects and other water creatures eat many of the eggs. Even if the eggs hatch, the tadpoles face the danger of being eaten by larger water animals.
Tadpoles are not completely developed when they hatch. At first, the tadpole clings to some support in the water, using its mouth. A tadpole has no neck and so its head and body look like one round form. Then the animal develops a long tail and resembles a little fish. It breathes at this time by means of gills.
A tadpole's form changes as the animal grows. Tadpoles eat plants and decaying animal matter.
In time, the tadpole begins to grow legs. The hind legs appear first. Then the lungs begin to develop and the front legs appear.
Just before its metamorphosis or change into a frog or toad, the tadpole loses it gills. Finally a tiny frog or toad, still bearing a stump of a tail, emerges from the water.