1/4 Vernacular Name FROG, ORNATE HORNED (aka: Argentine Horned Frog, Argentine Wide-mouthed Frog, Bell’s Horned Frog, Pacman Frog) GEOGRAPHIC RANGE South America: Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil. HABITAT Burrow in the leafy, muddy vegetation of the tropical forest floor of tropical lowlands. CONSERVATION STATUS • IUCN: Not Yet Assessed (2014). • This species is in significant decline (but at a rate of less than 30% over 10 years) because it is subject to intense persecution: habitat loss (due to agricultural development and housing development) is a major threat, as is water and soil pollution due to agriculture, industry and human settlement. COOL FACTS • The horned frog is named so because it has large fleshy points above its eyes that resemble small horns – e.g., fleshy eyelid “horns”. The "horn" is a triangular prolongation of the edge of the upper eyelid. It is not hard or sharp, as it is only a flap of skin, but perhaps it makes the wide head appear even wider and, therefore, less acceptable to predators. • The horned frogs' most prominent feature is its mouth, which accounts for roughly half of its overall size. These frogs are often called "mouths with legs" because the mouth appears to be the entire front half of the body. Their huge mouths and ravenous appetites have earned them the pet trade nickname “Pac Man frogs”. • One extraordinary characteristic that these amphibians possess is their innate ability to devour organisms larger than their own body size. They feed on frogs, lizards, other reptiles, mice and large insects. • Like all amphibians, horned frogs have porous skin and respond quickly to changes in the environment. They are very sensitive to minute changes in the ecosystem. • Like all frogs, these frogs sleep with their eyes open. Frog, Ornate Horned 2/4 • These frogs have exceptionally fast growth rates: within 2 weeks of hatching they have metamorphosed into their adult frog form. • As a small predator, one of the ornate frog's roles is controlling populations of small animals. As tadpoles and adults, horned frogs themselves are a source of food for many other carnivores. • These frogs are popular and common in the pet trade and are bred in captivity for this purpose. • The eggs are sold internationally for scientific embryological research. Researchers are able to halt the development of the egg in different stages of development in order to better understand cell division. MEDIAN LIFE EXPECTANCY • Unknown. DIET • In the wild: small arthropods, frogs, lizards and small snakes, birds and mammals. • In captivity: ENEMIES - DEFENSE • Enemies: humans • Defense: - they sit still and rely on cryptic coloration and disruptive outlines to avoid predators. - large specimens will attack anything which threatens them. They can inflict painful bites, holding on with bulldog tenacity. Even the tadpoles of the horned frogs are highly carnivorous. When threatened they are surprisingly fearless and aggressive, even jumping toward the enemy and biting. MATING - CARE OF THE YOUNG • Courtship and Mating Behavior: - males vocalize to attract females with a loud “baaa” call. - selection of a mate seems to be mostly by female choice. Once a female approaches a male, he grasps her from above with his hands in her armpits (axillary amplexus). • Incubation: it takes only 2 weeks to metamorphose from egg to tadpole to froglet. See Cool Facts. Clutch: 1,000-2,000 eggs are deposited in water or at the edge of water. • Sexual Maturity: 18-24 months SOCIAL INTERACTION • They are solitary • Communication, Vocal: their vocalization sounds similar to bovine bellowing. Frog, Ornate Horned 3/4 LIFE STYLE • Activity Period: diurnal. • Terrestrial: - they retreat under logs or leaf litter, in burrows or in bromeliads or other epiphytes during the day. They secrete themselves in shallow excavations amidst leaf litter with only the tops of their heads visible. - they hibernate for up to 6 months in dry conditions and wait for rain. - when below ground for extended periods, these frogs form cocoons around themselves to prevent dehydration. • Feeding: - these frogs are ambush (sit-and-wait) carnivorous predators. They remain motionless and hidden most of the time until potential food comes near, at which time they lunge from their small hole in the ground and eat or attempt to eat whatever it is that’s in front of them. It takes only a gulp or two to swallow the prey whole. - as adults, horned frogs are passive hunters that wait for their food to come to the before attacking. As juveniles, they are very active feeders and are cannibalistic. • Locomotion: - they are quite sedentary frogs, rarely venturing far from their hiding and resting sites. - when they do move, it is with a slow walk and short jumps. - they are incapable of climbing and are not good swimmers. PHYSICAL • General Description: a round, robust, plump body with little demarcation between the wide head and body. • Color: typically bright green with red markings, though dark green, parti-color black and albino pigmented throats. • Sexual Dimorphism (size): - females up to 5.5”-9”; large females may weigh up to 1 lb. - males up to 3.9”-7”. • Head: the skull is massive and casqued and the dermal roofing bones exhibit bony outgrowths. • Eyes: the constricted pupil on the eye is horizontally elliptical. • Mouths: large; their mouths are extremely wide, as wide as their heads and are equipped with strong gripping, powerful, settle-trap jaws and a wide, pink fleshy tongue. See Cool Facts. • Sternum: cartilaginous, bony. • Vertebrae: the transverse processes on the anterior vertebrae are greatly expanded. The sacral diapophyses are rounded. 8 separated presacral vertebrae. • Skeleton: the 2 halves of the pectoral girdle overlap mid-ventrally and are not fused ventrally. • Teeth: this species has teeth on the roof of its mouth (vomerine), as well as around the outside of its jaw. • Arms, Legs, Feet. - Feet: the terminal phalanges are knoblike. The dermal glandular pads are absent on the dorsal surfaces of the tips of the digits. Males have nuptial pads on their thumbs or insides of their hands. - Legs: relatively short. Frog, Ornate Horned 4/4 TAXONOMY Phylum / Subphylum Chordata / Vertebrata Class Amphibia Order Anura Family Leptodactylidae Genus / species Ceratophrys ornate • The ornate horned frogs' genus name means “horny skin” (Ceratophrys) and its species name means “ornate” (ornata). REFERENCES - The World Book Encyclopedia. 2006. Vol. 1: “Argentine Horned Frog”. Chicago. World Book, Inc. - De Vosjoli, Philippe. 1989. The General Care and Maintenance of Horned Frogs. California: Advanced Vivariorum Systems, - Kleiman, Debra G., Valerius Geist and Melissa C. McDade (eds): 2003. Grzimek’s Animal Life Encyclopedia. Vol. 6; Amphibians. Farmington Hill, MI: The Gale Group. - Kwef, Axel, Gabriel Skuk, Débora Silvano, Esteban Lavilla, Ismael di Tada, Rafael Lajmanovich 2004. Ceratophrys ornata. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.1. www.iucnredlist.org. - Mattison, Chris. 1986. Frogs and Toads of the World. New York: Facts on File, - IUCN, Conservation International, and NatureServe. 2006. Global Amphibian Assessment. www.globalamphibians.org. - IUCN 2014. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 13 June 2014. - National Zoo. - nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/ReptilesAmphibians/Facts/FactSheets/Ornatehornedfrog.cfm - Animal Bytes. www.seaworld.org/.../deuterostomes/chordata/craniata/amphibia/anura/south- american-ornate-horned-frog.htm - Honolulu Zoo. www.honoluluzoo.org/horned_frogs.htm Prepared by: Judith Ehrman, docent Date: 05-01-08 Photo by: John Bernard, docent Map by: Judith Ehrman - Bob Sloane, docents Approved by: Date: Reformatted by: Judith Ehrman and Bob Sloane, docents Date: 07-02-12 .