The differences between frogs and toads have no taxonomic value, both frogs and toads belong to the same order, the anurans. The words frog and toad are used colloquially to refer to graceful and light-looking amphibians without tails, such as frogs, as opposed to those more robust and clumsy, such as toads.
However, many frogs are considered toads at first glance and vice versa. Therefore, in this article on our site we will see what are the differences between frogs and toads, the characteristics that define them and some examples. Let us begin!
Origin of amphibians
The possible ancestors of amphibians would be fish called panderiptids, which lived in the Devonian. They were lungfish. They were grouped into two groups:
1. Batrachomorphs
That give rise to the three current amphibian groups:
- Anurans: amphibians without tails in their adult stage, frogs and toads.
- Urodelos: tailed amphibians, salamanders and newts.
- Apodes: legless amphibians such as caecilians.
two. Reptilomorphs
That gave rise to the first reptiles.
Anurans inhabit all continents except Antarctica and desert or polar regions.
Characteristics of frogs
Frogs are animals closely linked to water or very humid environments. They have glands of ectodermal origin all over their bodies that, in some cases, have evolved into venomous glands, such as the parotid glands, behind the eyes. These glands do not act by contact, only if the animal is bitten. Many frogs have adhesive glands that they have at the level of the suckers on their fingers and are used to climb trees.
Generally, frogs have a smooth and always moist skin, without bumps, although there are exceptions. They are jumping animals, climbers or both at the same time. Its limbs are long and thin and its body is not very robust.
Don't miss our article on feeding frog tadpoles!
Characteristics of toads
Toads are more detached from the water than frogs thanks to the fact that their skin is more protected by the presence of hundreds of warts, giving it a rough appearance. They can also live in ponds and lagoons, but they tend to prefer more muddy areas, being able to build tunnels under the ground to protect themselves from drying out.
In addition, toads can have spurs, which are horny protuberances located on the hind legs that help them to fixate more when they fall from a jump or to hold the female during copulation. On the other hand, toads are more running animals than jumpers. They often walk on all fours instead of moving by jumping.
Differences between frog and toad
Although it seems easy to differentiate a frog from a toad, we can make mistakes, as there are many exceptions since, as we said, the terms frog and toad are merely colloquial. Even so, we can say that the most decisive differences between toads and frogs are:
- Skin: Frogs' skin tends to be smooth, soft, and very moist. The skin of toads, on the other hand, is rough and dry.
- Locomotion: Frogs are usually jumping animals, very agile, fast swimmers and, in many cases, arboreal. Toads are running animals, they can jump, but they prefer to walk on their four legs. They can also dig with their hind legs.
- Aspect: One of the main differences is that toads tend to be thick, strong-looking, very muscular animals. On the other hand, frogs are thinner and finer, this does not mean that they do not have the strength and power to move quickly.
- Habitat: Finally, there are also differences in the type of habitat that frogs and toads choose to live in. The former are more aquatic and their skin dries quickly without the presence of water. Toads are more terrestrial animals, they maintain more water control in their body and only need a little moisture that they can find in the ground to survive.
Examples of toads
Most types of toads are poisonous toads and give off a strange smell, although they are generally harmless to humans, the problem comes when a wild animal, a cat or a dog bites a toad, because at that moment they secrete some toxins that in contact with the mucosa of the mouth the irritates and the animal quickly drops the toad. Some examples of toads are:
- Midwife Toad (Alytes obstetricans)
- Common Toad (Bufo bufo)
- Brown Spadefoot Toad (Pelobates cultripes)
- Fire-bellied Toad (Bombina orientalis)
- Green Toad (Bufo Viridis)
- Balearic Midwife Toad (Alytes obstetricans)
- American Toad (Bufo americanus)
- Giant Toad (Bufo Marinus)
- Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus); it's a toad even though it's called a frog.
- Raider Toad (Bufo calamita)
Examples of frogs
Unlike toads, frogs are not always poisonous, there are even species that are human food, like the frog edible (Pelophylax esculentus). On the other hand, some species of frogs are among the most poisonous animal species in the world, they are the frogs of the Dendrobatidae family, among them we find:
- Golden frog (Phyllobates terribilis)
- Blue Arrow Frog (Dendrobates azureus)
- Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates tinctorius)
- Bicolor Poison Frog (Phyllobates bicolor)
Other species of frogs are:
- Pool Frog (European Lessononae)
- Marsh Frog (Pelophylax ridibundus)
- Country Frog (Rana arvalis)
- Common frog (Pelophylax perezi)
- Australian Green Tree Frog (Litoria caerulea)
Discover on our site the types of frogs that exist, a complete list with species and names!
