Who is this beauty that I am talking about?
Am I talking about some girl with beautifully painted red eyes?
No.
Am I talking about a cousin of Red Riding Hood?
No.
The red eyed beauty I am talking about is a FROG !!
What! Did you just say that’s a funny joke.
Haven’t you ever heard about Red Eyed Frogs? These frogs are found all over the rainforests of Central America. They have huge and bulging firey red eyes that stand out on their tiny bright green bodies. That’s exactly why they are called Red Eyed Frogs. Infact, even the formal name for red eyed frog – ‘Agalychnis callidryas’ comes from the Greek words that mean a beautiful tree nymph !!
These frogs, are sometimes also known as the red eyed tree frogs because they spend there entire life walking or climbing the trees. They almost never come on land and stay in water once in there life when they are a little tadpole.
They are extremely light and are just 2 to 3 inches in size. That is not be more than the size of your thumb!!
Red Eyed Tree Frogs are remarkably colourful. Other than lovely red eyes, they have a vibrant green body, yellow and blue strips all over the thighs, and orange or yellow webbed feet and toes.
They are smart too !! They are nocturnal creatures which means they have to sleep a lot during the day. While resting on a leaf during their sleep time, they tuck their thighs and feet under their belly. Their green body merges so well with the leaf that it is practically impossible for a predator to spot them. This art of hiding oneself by blending in the surroundings is called camouflague.
Once in a while when camouflaging doesn’t help, they pop open their red eyes and colorful thighs. All this sudden flash of colors shocks predators, giving time to the frog to leap to safety.
Red-eyed tree frogs are not venomous and eat moths, flies and other insects by sticking their tongue out. They themselves often fall prey to snakes and birds.
A group of these cute Red-eyed tree frogs is called an army !!
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