{"id":38210,"date":"2024-05-08T11:38:40","date_gmt":"2024-05-08T09:38:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4fe61212-41a5-47c0-9781-5a9960b1f6a1"},"modified":"2024-05-08T13:35:40","modified_gmt":"2024-05-08T11:35:40","slug":"theres-a-bizarre-frog-in-the-amazon-rainforest-that-screams-at-predators-to-scare-them-away-listen-if-you-dare","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/theres-a-bizarre-frog-in-the-amazon-rainforest-that-screams-at-predators-to-scare-them-away-listen-if-you-dare\/","title":{"rendered":"There’s a\u00a0bizarre frog in the Amazon rainforest that screams at predators to scare them away. Listen, if you dare\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ecologists think the clay robber frog’s ultrasonic call causes shock and pain to a potential predator, or maybe even attracts a bigger predator, so that the current threat runs away. <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 08 May 2024 at 09:38 AM<\/p>

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In the animal world, defence against predators<\/a> can be achieved in many ways. If you can\u2019t run or fight back, you can hide or camouflage<\/a> yourself to pretend you\u2019re not there, perhaps mimicking a flower, leaf or rock.\u00a0You can look like something that tastes horrible or resemble something that would be very bad to get too close to. <\/p>

Now, a group of scientists from Unicamp University in Sao Paulo, Brazil, have discovered<\/a> a new way for an animal to deter a predator: by screaming very loudly at it in ultrasound.\u00a0<\/p>

What’s particularly surprisingly is that the animal involved isn\u2019t a highly annoyed mini-mammal or an irritated insect, but a frog.\u00a0<\/p>

The species in question is the clay robber frog (Haddadus binotatus<\/em>).<\/p>

Why do frogs scream?<\/a><\/li>
8 of the weirdest frogs in the world<\/a><\/li>
Why do some frogs have five legs?<\/a><\/li>
How do frogs breathe?<\/a><\/li><\/ul>
Clay robber frog<\/h2>
Listen: the incredible ultrasonic call of the clay robber frog <\/figcaption><\/figure>
The clay robber frog is common in Brazil\u2019s Atlantic Coastal Forest, where it lives among the leaf litter of the forest floor. <\/p>
Eggs from the 60mm-long females hatch directly into tiny froglets (they don’t have a tadpole stage). This lack of dependence on standing water has helped make\u00a0the clay robber frog\u00a0one of the most common amphibians<\/a> in the forests of Rio de Janeiro and Espirito Santo states. <\/p>
Such abundance means the species has been well-studied by biologists, who thought they had pretty much closed the book on what was known about the biology of the frog.<\/p>
That was until ecologist Ubirat\u00e3\u00a0Ferreira Souza and colleagues decided to take a closer look at the calls of the species. <\/p>
Clay robber frog scream to the human ear – inaudible during the first half of the call and audible in the second half. Credit: Lucas Rosado<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Ultrasonic scream<\/h2>
The scientists noticed that, along with the human-audible croaks and trills, there was a huge set of ultrasonic calls, too. Careful study revealed that these were only emitted under very particular circumstances.<\/p>
Whenever the frogs were deeply startled they would arch their backs and open their mouths very wide. Oddly, audible sounds appeared as their mouths began to close.\u00a0<\/em>Before that, the team discovered these toff-coloured amphibians made calls (not audible to the human ear) that were not just high-pitched but also very loud. Although exactly how loud is still to be worked out.\u00a0<\/p>
The researchers think the calls either function as a sonic blast, causing shock and pain to a potential predator, or perhaps work to attract an even bigger predator, so that the current threat runs away.\u00a0<\/p>
$\"Clay$ Visualising the sound: the ultrasonic frequency of the clay robber frog scream peaks at the beginning of its call. Credit: Henrique Nogueira<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Ultrasonic calls are rare in frogs; with only three tiny species in Asia known to make them, but there they serve the same sex-and-territory functions as familiar frog calls. The clay robber frog\u00a0<\/em>is the only known species to use them defensively, say Souza and colleagues. <\/p>
The researchers now intend to determine exactly how the clay robber frog makes this call and how loud the call is.<\/p>
Reader more about the study: Ultrasonic distress calls and associated defensive behaviors in Neotropical frogs<\/a><\/em>. Ubirat\u00e3 Ferreira Souza,\u00a0Guilherme Augusto-Alves,\u00a0Mariana Retuci Pontes,\u00a0Lucas Machado Botelho,\u00a0Ed\u00e9lcio Muscat\u00a0&\u00a0Lu\u00eds Felipe Toledo<\/em>.<\/p>
More stories from South America:<\/strong><\/p>
Canopy bridges are saving endangered wildlife in the Amazon rainforest. Here’s how<\/a><\/li>
Giant anteater seen in southern Brazil for the first time in more than 100 years<\/a><\/li>
Stunning new species of moth with whip-like defensive mechanism discovered in Brazil<\/a><\/li><\/ul> <\/body><\/html>\n
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Clay robber frog<\/h2>Listen: the incredible ultrasonic call of the clay robber frog <\/figcaption><\/figure>The clay robber frog is common in Brazil\u2019s Atlantic Coastal Forest, where it lives among the leaf litter of the forest floor. <\/p>