Frogs are some of the most colorful and beautiful creatures of all. Sometimes the bright colors are simply beautiful, but more often than not, they serve a purpose, to tell potential predators that they probably don’t make for a good meal. Let’s take a look at 10 of the most colorful frogs in the world!
1. Red-Eyed Tree Frog
The red-eyed tree frog can be found in forests all throughout Central and South America.
They feature some of the brightest colors of all, with green bodies, orange-red feet, and yellow and blue lines and markings down their sides. They even have big and luminous red eyes.
These small amphibians spend most of their days living in the trees hunting for crickets and flies. Despite their bright colors, they aren’t poisonous. It looks like those colors are nothing more than a bluff!
2. Tomato Frogs
Here is one frog you wouldn’t want to mistake for the item it is named after: the tomato frog. This frog is native to Madagascar where they exist in small and ever-shrinking numbers.
As you can probably tell by their names, these 3-inch-long frogs feature a bright red and orange coloration with some yellow accents. Talk about sticking out like a sore thumb!
When threatened, the tomato frog puffs up to make itself look even bigger, growing from the size of a small cherry tomato to a regular-sized tomato in the blink of an eye. Thankfully, it secretes a liquid from its skin that quite literally makes the mouths of its predators go numb!
3. Amazon Milk Frog
When it comes to colorful amphibians, the Amazon milk frog is by far one of the most beautiful ones on the list, although not overly bright. These frogs have brown bodies with pastel blue accents, combined with yellowish eyes that really pop.
Although it might look somewhat unassuming at first glance, it’s called a milk frog because it secretes a milky poison that will quickly put any predator down for the count if it is unlucky enough to mistake it for a tasty meal.
4. Argentine Horned Frog
If you’re looking for a frog that has about as many colors on it as the rainbow, then look no further than the Argentine horned frog. Native to Argentina and the surrounding area, this amphibian grows up to 6.5 inches long, complete with a mouth that takes up about half of the animal! Talk about being ready for a meal.
These frogs feature a blotchy appearance with a green base coat, brown spots, and plenty of red accents along the top, and that’s just the top half. The Argentine horned frog has a white base coat on its belly with brown markings, complete with fiercely yellow legs. It’s like a mosaic came to life and turned into a frog!
5. Blue Poison Dart Frog
The blue poison dart frog is a very interesting creature to consider, and not just because of its coloration, but rather because of where its poison comes from.
This blue menace eats poisonous ants, which then leads it to secrete a poisonous substance from its skin. It’s really convenient to ward off predators. Interestingly enough, the ants aren’t poisonous enough to harm the frog.
It does, however, eat enough of them to pack a serious punch in the event that a predator tries to take a bite. As you can guess, it is very blue, with a light blue body, dark blue spots, and deep blue legs.
6. Strawberry Poison Dart Frog
Another poison dart frog, here we have the aptly named strawberry, which features a bright strawberry red body and deep blue or almost purple legs. Just like the blue variety discussed above, this one is also poisonous due to the ants and mites that it eats.
Something that might stop you from handling these little guys is that they are actually so poisonous, that, if eaten, they can cause seizures, paralysis, and death. Who knew that something so small could be so deadly?
7. Glass Frog
Although they might be colorful, you probably won’t ever see a glass frog in your whole life. They are tiny, live in trees, hunt at night, and are totally motionless during the day. The reason they’re called glass frogs is because they are translucent.
This means that you can see their insides through their skin, including their internal organs!
It’s like a walking biology animal that you don’t even have to slice open to see what’s going on inside. That said, they do have a nice green and yellow exterior that allows them to neatly blend in with their boreal surroundings.
8. Golden Poison Frog
Here we have the golden poison dart frog, which is essentially one of the most poisonous and lethal amphibians on the planet. It is bright gold from top to bottom, just one solid color, along with a bit of brown on its feet.
Its moderate color might not serve as the biggest warning sign to predators, which is unfortunate, because one of these little amphibians has more than enough poison in it to kill a whopping 20,000 mice!
9. Yellow-Banded Poison Dart Frog
Yes, here we have another poison dart frog that is only poisonous due to the toxic ants that it eats. Thankfully, they aren’t really dangerous if handled, as long as you don’t lick your fingers afterward. Frog legs, anyone?
The yellow-banded poison dart frog is often referred to as the bumblebee poison frog because its body features a dark black and bright yellow color combination. They’re pretty easy to spot from quite a distance!
10. Malagasy Rainbow Frog
Although many may not consider it a thing of beauty, the Malagasy rainbow frog is one of the most colorful of all. It essentially amounts to a mosaic of colors, including blotches of black, green, yellow, orange, and red.
It almost looks like somebody let a colorblind person try their hand at painting. In spite of its appearance, it makes for a very popular pet across the world, which is a reason why it is on the endangered species list.
