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Frogs ' heads may calculate liquid and rounded on their surfaces , but peek under the skin of some specie and you ’ll incur skulls that resemble the heads ofmythical dragons , stud with spikes , sticker and other bony structures .
Scientists recently highlighted the diversity of frog skulls in a series of incredible images , part of a fresh work investigating skull evolution and function in armoured frogs .
Hemiphractus scutatus, a South American horned tree frog, has a wide skull with a large gape that enables it to prey on vertebrates.
In these frogs , skull can be shield - shaped or exceptionally wide ; they may be pocked by groove or adorned with pointy bits that may provide surplus tribute against being eaten , the investigator describe .
concern : In picture : Cute and colorful frogs
hokey coloring in the images indicates variations in off-white density in different skull parts , say lead sketch writer Daniel Paluh , a doctorial candidate in the Department of Biology at the University of Florida . In the image of the horned frogHemiphractus scutatus,“blue portion of the skull , such as the cranium , are lower density than the immature part , including the jaws , " Paluh told Live Science in an e-mail .
Bony spikes on the skull of Anotheca spinosa, a tree frog from Central America, may protect it against predators.(Image credit: Florida Museum/Image by Edward Stanley)
There are approximately 7,000 have intercourse frog specie . For the study , the scientist call for data from 158 species representing all of the major frog families . They found that not only was there a caboodle of diversity in skull shapes ; some of those variations come along across different origin , separated by millions of years ofevolution .
" For example , big , bastioned skulls with intricate radiation pattern of pit and channel have independently develop in the African bullfrog , South American horn frog and the Solomon Island leaf batrachian , " Paluh say . " And all of these species are trap vulture that will eat other vertebrate . "
excavator - headed Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree frog , whose flattened skulls resemble gardening tools , habituate their heads to block entry to the crack and holes where they live . Their skull also have spines , ridges and grooves , " in addition to very wide skull cap bones that leave protection from predators , " Paluh explained .
(Image credit: Florida Museum/Image by Daniel Paluh)
" Because all frogs look so similar , there has been limit pastime in studying the evolution of their anatomy , " Paluh say . " Our study attest there is still much to learn about the evolution , environmental science and anatomy of these amazing brute . "
The findings were published online today ( March 27 ) in the journalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences .
Originally published onLive Science .
The aquatic frog Barbourula busuangensis is also known as the Philippine flat-headed frog.(Image credit: Florida Museum/Image by Daniel Paluh)
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Ceratophrys aurita (Brazilian horned frog, Brazil). Several frogs, including this Brazilian horned frog, are known to hunt other vertebrates (including other amphibians, mammals, birds, and reptiles) and have fortified skulls covered in intricate patterns of grooves, ridges and pits formed by extra layers of bone. This trait, which is called hyperossification, likely allows these species to more effectively eat larger, harder prey.(Image credit: Image courtesy of Daniel J. Paluh)
Pyxicephalus adspersus (African bullfrog; sub-Saharan Africa). Some of these voracious predators, including this African bullfrog, have a formidable bite due to large, bony fangs on the lower jaw (highlighted in orange).(Image credit: Image courtesy of Daniel J. Paluh)
Aparasphenodon brunoi (Bruno’s casque-headed frog, Brazil). Three species of hyperossified frog, including Bruno’s casque-headed frog, were recently discovered to be venomous with enlarged poison glands that are associated with the spines of the skull. When a predator rams the head of one these frogs, specialized spikes pierce through the glands just under the skin as a defense.(Image credit: Image courtesy of Daniel J. Paluh)
Brachycephalus ephippium (Pumpkin toadlet, Brazil). It was once thought that hyperossification may be linked to very small body sizes (miniaturization) in frogs, as the trait is present in the miniscule pumpkin toadlet, which is less than an inch long. But our research demonstrates that the trait is present across the entire spectrum of frog body sizes.(Image credit: Image courtesy of Daniel J. Paluh)
