The Green Puddle Frog, also known as the Rough-skinned Floating Frog, Pearly Skin Puddle Frog, or Pointed-tongued Floating Frog, is a small species of frog from the family Dicroglossidae.
They are found in many countries across Asia, including Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and possibly Nepal.
Where Do Green Puddle Frogs Live?
Green Puddle Frogs are found in a variety of natural habitats, such as:
- Subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland,
- Rivers,
- Swamps,
- Intermittent freshwater lakes,
- Freshwater marshes,
- Intermittent freshwater marshes,
- Ponds,
- Irrigated land,
- Seasonally flooded agricultural land, and
- Canals and ditches.
Green Puddle Frogs are also found in the pet trade, with many being imported from Indonesia.
Are There Different Species of Green Puddle Frogs?
Some scientists believe that the Green Puddle Frog may actually consist of separate species.
Chan (2013) has argued for three separate species: (1) Java, Indonesia; (2) southern China to northern Indochina; (3) southern Indochina to Myanmar.
How Do Green Puddle Frogs Hunt and Eat?
Green Puddle Frogs have a unique way of hunting, as they spend most of their lives floating on the surface of the water.
They swim toward small insects that fall onto the water’s surface and capture them with their agile tongue.
They also eat submerged worms, such as tubifex, and use their front paws to help put the worms into their mouths.
What Do Green Puddle Frogs Look Like?
Green Puddle Frogs are small, with a size of approximately 3.5 cm. Their colors can vary from greenish to beige, with dark staining on their bodies.
Some frogs also have scratched marks on their backs. The abdominal area of these frogs is pale and without any patterns.
They have webbed toes on their hind legs, similar to the African clawed frog, but their front legs and flattened body shape are more similar to the Javanese swimming frog.
How Can Green Puddle Frogs Be Kept as Pets?
Care and Accommodation
Taking care of Green Puddle Frogs is easy, as they don’t have special demands regarding the composition of the water or their food.
A standard aquarium measuring 60 x 30 x 30 cm is enough to house 6 to 12 frogs.
The water level in the aquarium should be between 5 to 7 cm deep, and any openings in the cover should be covered with filter wadding to prevent the frogs from escaping.
Plants and Decorations
In the aquarium, you can include plants like Burhead (Echinodorus) or Water Trumpet (Cryptocoryne).
Floating plants, such as Water Lettuce (Pistia) or West Indian Spongeplant (Limnobium laevigatum), are also recommended.
Until the plants grow, you should place a piece of decorative cork on the water’s surface so the frogs can find a resting area if they wish.
Lighting and Temperature
A neon tube is enough for tank lighting, which will raise the air temperature to around 82°F to 89°F (28°C to 32°C) during the day.
At night, the temperature drops to room temperature, which is beneficial for the frogs’ health. Heating is only necessary if the temperature drops below 64.4°F (18°C).
What Is the Behavior of Green Puddle Frogs?
Green Puddle Frogs are confident and active animals. They like to position themselves on floating plants or float under the water’s surface.
Sometimes, they engage in “chest squeezes” and use their front legs to flap at each other, resembling a mini boxing match.
They are also very communicative and emit bright screeches when they approach the aquarium.
What Do Green Puddle Frogs Eat?
Green Puddle Frogs can eat a variety of small insects, such as fruit flies (Drosophila), little crickets (Acheta domesticus), and aphids.
They also enjoy underwater hunting and can eat large water fleas (Daphnia magna), live larvae of red mosquitoes, or tubifex worms.
How Do Green Puddle Frogs Reproduce?
Green Puddle Frogs can reproduce throughout the year, but they seem to prefer the winter months (November to February) for breeding.
Male Green Puddle Frogs grab females by the waist, and females can lay between 50 and several hundred eggs, depending on their size and condition.
The eggs are 0.6 to 1.1 mm in diameter. Tadpoles are light olive in color, with a dark stripe around their tail.
They can eat commercial flake food for ornamental fish and can grow up to 3.9 cm in length during metamorphosis.
In captivity, Green Puddle Frogs can live for more than five years, which is longer than their natural life expectancy in the wild.
You can check out what this amphibian looks like over here.
Scientific Classification
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Amphibia |
| Order: | Anura |
| Family: | Dicroglossidae |
| Genus: | Occidozyga |
| Scientific Name: | Occidozyga lima |
| Also Known As: | Green Puddle Frog, Rough-skinned Floating Frog, Pearly Skin Puddle Frog, Pointed-Tongued Floating Frog |
| Conservation Status: | Least Concern |