Meet the frogs that live in the desert

Article | Updated 8 years ago

When we think of a frog, we imagine it relaxing on a lily pad on the edge of a lake, lazily catching flies with its long, sticky tongue. But did you know that some hardy frog species have adapted to survive in some of the driest places in Australia? 

Scientists call an area that doesn’t receive much, if any, rainfall a desert. Much of Western Australia is classified as desert, and surprisingly, these dry areas are home to at least 19 species of frog. 

So how can a frog, with its moist, delicate skin, survive in such harsh conditions? It’s all about adaptation. 

Adaptations

An adaptation is a physical or behavioural change that an animal or plant possesses to help it cope with its environment. Here are some of the ways frogs have adapted to their new desert homes: 

• Desert frogs burrow underground during the dry months, in order to escape the searing sun. They can stay underground for many months while they wait for the next rains to fall.
• Whilst underground, many species produce a type of cocoon with many layers of their shed skin that covers their entire body (except for the nostrils). This helps to reduce water loss.
• Most desert frogs only reproduce in response to a significant rainfall event. Females can then lay eggs in temporary pools. Some even lay their eggs in mud. These eggs then hatch when they are eventually flooded with water, and the tadpoles can swim straight into the water! Smart.
• One particular type of frog, the Northern Sandhill Frog, doesn’t even need water to hatch its eggs. These babies hop right over the tadpole stage, hatching out of their eggs as tiny, fully formed versions of their adult parents.

Scientists who study frogs, called Herpetologist, are still learning a lot about arid-zone frogs, and how they have adapted to live in their hot, dry homes. Who knows what amazing secrets they might unlock next!