When sorting through my photos of local “anura”, I found this one from 2014:
, now uploaded here:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/106895949
Contrary to the displayed mating behavior, cross-breeding between members of these two families is not possible. “This is not for lack of trying; there are several documented incidents of male toads grasping frogs in amplexus (the amphibian mating embrace)” -
https://www.qm.qld.gov.au/Explore/Find+out+about/Ask+an+Expert/Question+of+the+month/Question+Archive/Questions/2013/July+2013 - though here it’s the frog that’s grasping the toad.
Would anybody have any more information, perhaps a similar observation? Thank you.
It’s pretty well known that during mating season male frogs and toads will try to mate with pretty much anything that’s moving.
Here’s some Cane Toads trying to mate with a python .
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Amplexus between different species of Anura is often reported in the journal Herpetological Review and seems to be not uncommon.
It’s hard to get a toad from your hand in spring as it tries hard to stay in amplexus with it, so toad/frog ones seem totally normal.
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Yes, while this is “uncommon” (in that it’s much less frequent then correctly targeted mating behavior), it’s not that uncommon. Misdirected mating has been observed in many different species of anurans, including mating with the incompatible sex, incompatible species, dead individuals, inanimate objects, etc.
One of the most interesting examples (to me) is actually in beetles with a predilection for beer bottles: https://www.thoughtco.com/the-giant-jewel-beetle-1968152
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system
April 18, 2022, 12:47pm
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