Page 99 - Atlas Of The World's Strangest Animals

AMERICAN BULLFROG 99

These big ‘bulls’ are very territorial, using their loud, distinctive A young male is unimpressed by so much ‘hot air’ and decides
calls to attract mates and proclaim ownership of territory. to challenge the resident to a contest of strength.

Rearing up on their powerful hind legs, the two males go for a Having seen the ruckus, another bull decides discretion is the
grapple – pushing at each other like over-inflated wrestlers. better part of valour and sneaks past the combative male!

and wherever they go, these big beasts have created big Indeed, a bullfrog on the attack is a startling sight.
environmental problems. They can leap up to 2m (6.6ft) and once they’re within
All ecosystems are delicately balanced and when new striking distance, they lunge at their prey with their
species are introduced, it often results in a dramatic fall in mouth open, and their fleshy tongue ready to engulf
native species. Sometimes this is because the new species their victim. If the prey struggles too much, the frog may
brings disease, but usually the native animals simply have dive into the water with it – the struggle soon stops.
no defence against the intruders. In North America, Any victim that can’t be swallowed whole or pulled in
populations of bullfrogs were introduced to the Pacific with the tongue is crammed into their mouths with the
north-west in the early 1930s.They are bigger than the fore arms.This is such an efficient technique that
local species of frog, so they have now displaced them in examinations of the contents of bullfrog stomachs have
many areas. It’s not just a matter of size, either. North revealed rodents, turtles, snakes, birds, bats and even other
American bullfrogs are famously predatory and one study, bullfrogs. Unfortunately, these greedy guts do sometimes
in 1913, suggested that they will eat any animal they can bite off more than they can chew, and many bullfrogs die
overpower and fit into their ample mouths. by choking to death!

(c) 2011 Marshall Cavendish. All Rights Reserved.