by This frog with a perpetual frown isn’t actually grumpy – that’s just how the Black Rain Frog looks! This grouchy-faced amphibian has the most ɪɴᴛɪᴍɪᴅᴀᴛɪɴɢ mug around. The proof is in the grumping. Scroll through for more grump.
The Black Rain Frog is a burrowing amphibian who is native to the Southern coast of Africa. One nifty characteristic possessed by this frog is that they burrow to create tunnels up to 150 mm deep.
Since they are a burrowing species who inhabit forest fringes, this frog never actually needs to be in the presence of open water to sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇ. When ᴛʜʀᴇᴀᴛᴇɴᴇᴅ, the black rain frog will puff up, expanding its body to adopt a more ᴀɢɢʀᴇssɪᴠᴇ stance. Sᴡᴏʟʟᴇɴ, ᴀɴɢʀʏ, and ready for ʙᴀᴛᴛʟᴇ, these frogs couldn’t look more like pissed-off avocados if they tried. Presumably, and hopefully, ᴘʀᴇᴅᴀᴛᴏʀs don’t find them nearly as cute as we do.
To make them even cuter, the male Black Rain Frogs produce a chirping sound which sounds like when you repeatedly squeeze a rubber chicken or other squeaky dog-toy. They make this call to deter ᴘʀᴇᴅᴀᴛᴏʀs, but we can’t help but find it more adorable than ɪɴᴛɪᴍɪᴅᴀᴛɪɴɢ.
In actuality, this frog isn’t really crotchety. In fact, they’re very considerate! One of their unusual ᴍᴀᴛɪɴɢ season ritual occurs in the females of the species. The lady-frogs will secrete a special sticky substance from their backs, so that the male frogs don’t fall off during the act of intercourse.
During ᴍᴀᴛɪɴɢ season, the male frogs will actually stay in the burrow to guard their eggs and will send out little chirps as part of their calls.
The Black Rain Frog cannot handle habitat disturbances, such as habitat ʟᴏss due to fires or afforestation, but luckily these little cuties habitats are currently well protected and these little grumpy avocados seem to be thriving in their special little nook of the world.
The world is filled with so many precious and interesting animals, and it’s such a joy to keep learning about the many wonderful creatures we share our planet with.
