Zoo Buddy: Australian Green Tree Frog!

MONROE, La. (KNOE) - Meet the Australian Green Tree Frog at the Louisiana Purchase Gardens and Zoo!

“These are our Australian Tree Frogs, they’re also known as White’s Tree Frogs, but my favorite name for them is Dumpy Tree Frogs,” says zookeeper Garrett Cole. “These guys come from Australia as the name implies and they tend to get about three to five inches in total length so they are the biggest tree frog species and they have the biggest toe pads.”

They’re in an exhibit in the reptile building next to some turtles.

“Frogs in general use their eyeballs to swallow, they have a thick mucus inside of their mouth that kind of keeps the prey inside of their mouth so when they need to swallow, that mucus kind of prevents them from swallowing, so they’ll actually take their eyeballs and push them down into their mouth cavity and force the food down their throat,” says Cole.

Cole says most frogs use their tongues to catch prey, but these frogs jump and force the prey into their mouth.

“Another cool fact that separates them from other frogs is their skin,” says Cole. “They secrete a milk-white substance on their skin that is called caerviein and it regulates the moisture inside their body. Most frogs produce a mucus on the outside that’s bitter and deters predators but these guys don’t use it for that, they use it for moisture which allows them to regulate their body temperature.”

The zoo is also preparing for its annual Easter Eggstravaganza! It goes from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on April 1st. They’ll have food trucks, shopping vendors, and the Easter Bunny on hand.

The zoo is open every day of the week between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Visit their Facebook page for more information.

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