The common Surinam toad or star-fingered toad is a species of frog found in South America and it has no teeth and no tongue.
The toad is similar in appearance to a mottled brown leaf, and is almost completely flat.
READ ALSO: Uganda: Inside world’s smallest church that holds up to three churchgoers
Its feet are broadly webbed with the front toes having small, star-like appendages.
Males can grow up to 154 mm, whereas females can reach up to 171 mm.
Females can not only be distinguished by their length, but also due to their ring shaped cloaca, visible when they are ready to breed.
Their skin color is mostly light brown with some darker spots on the back, so they can easily avoid predators.
The head of the Pipa Pipa has a very flat appearance and is triangular.
It also has very small black eyes, that are located on the top of their head.
These are not the only different characteristics, the toads have very long fingers that end in four star-shaped lobes.
The frogs are omnivores, meaning that their diet consists mostly of invertebrates, such as worms, crustaceans and small fishes.
The toad has sensory organs in the fingertips which help them catch their prey.
Suriname toads are best known for their reproductive habits.
Unlike the majority of toads, the males of this species do not attract mates with croaks and other sounds often associated with these aquatic animals.
Instead, they produce a sharp clicking sound by snapping the hyoid bone in their throats.
Afterwards, they will swim back down to the bottom of the water. There the male will lay on his back, with the female on top of him on her stomach.
During each arc, the female releases 3 to 10 eggs, which get embedded in the skin on her back by the male’s movements, this can happen up to ten times.
After implantation, the eggs sink into the skin and form pockets over a period of several days, eventually taking on the appearance of an irregular honeycomb.
READ ALSO: Get to know the massive Nazca lines of Peru
After giving birth to the new toads, the mother slowly sheds the thin layer of skin that was used to birth them, and can begin the cycle again.
Do you have a story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through info@gotta.news or call/SMS +254 731 469269
