Invasive, Carnivorous Frogs Are Now Breeding In Georgia -- Drew Kann, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Cuban treefrog (Osteopilus septentrionalis). Credit: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
Drew Kann -- The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jan. 5, 2024
An invasive species of carnivorous tree frogs that feed on native wildlife are now breeding in Georgia, a sign that the amphibians have gained a stronger foothold in the state, biologists say.
Cuban treefrogs, Osteopilus septentrionalis, are a mostly canopy-dwelling species native to the Caribbean. It's unclear exactly when they made the leap across the Straits of Florida, but the species was first documented in Florida in the mid-1900s.
In the decades since, the frogs have spread across the Southeast and beyond. They were discovered in Georgia in 2004, but were likely in the southern part of the state long before that, said Daniel Sollenberger, the state herpetologist and a senior wildlife biologist with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.
Cuban treefrogs can reach five and a half inches long—big enough to cover most of an adult human's hand and much larger than any of Georgia's native tree frogs. And the frogs will eat "anything they can put in their mouth," Sollenberger said, from insects and lizards to other tree frogs and even small rodents.
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