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Etymology and taxonomy

The document discusses the classification of frogs and toads, noting that all members of the order Anura are technically frogs, while only those in the family Bufonidae are true toads. It also explores the etymology of the terms 'frog' and 'toad', highlighting their uncertain origins and historical usage. Additionally, the taxonomy of Anura is outlined, detailing its various families and suborders, as well as the characteristics that define these amphibians.

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Etymology and taxonomy

The document discusses the classification of frogs and toads, noting that all members of the order Anura are technically frogs, while only those in the family Bufonidae are true toads. It also explores the etymology of the terms 'frog' and 'toad', highlighting their uncertain origins and historical usage. Additionally, the taxonomy of Anura is outlined, detailing its various families and suborders, as well as the characteristics that define these amphibians.

Uploaded by

Li
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The use of the common names frog and toad has no taxonomic

justification. From a classification perspective, all members of the order


Anura are frogs, but only members of the family Bufonidae are considered
"true toads". The use of the term frog in common names usually refers to
species that are aquatic or semi-aquatic and have smooth, moist skins;
the term toad generally refers to species that are terrestrial with dry,
warty skins.[2][3] There are numerous exceptions to this rule. The European
fire-bellied toad (Bombina bombina) has a slightly warty skin and prefers a
watery habitat[4] whereas the Panamanian golden frog (Atelopus zeteki) is
in the toad family Bufonidae and has a smooth skin. [5]

Etymology

The origin of the order name Anura—and its original spelling Anoures—is
the Ancient Greek alpha privative prefix ἀν- (an- from ἀ- before a vowel)
'without',[6] and οὐρά (ourá) 'animal tail'.[7] meaning "tailless". It refers to
the tailless character of these amphibians. [8][9][10]

The origins of the word frog are uncertain and debated.[11] The word is first
attested in Old English as frogga, but the usual Old English word for the
frog was frosc (with variants such as frox and forsc), and it is agreed that
the word frog is somehow related to this. Old English frosc remained in
dialectal use in English as frosh and frosk into the nineteenth century,
[12]
and is paralleled widely in other Germanic languages, with examples in
the modern languages
including German Frosch, Norwegian frosk, Icelandic froskur,
and Dutch (kik)vors.[11] These words allow reconstruction of a Common
Germanic ancestor *froskaz.[13] The third edition of the Oxford English
Dictionary finds that the etymology of *froskaz is uncertain, but agrees
with arguments that it could plausibly derive from a Proto-Indo-
European base along the lines of *preu, meaning 'jump'.[11]

How Old English frosc gave rise to frogga is, however, uncertain, as the
development does not involve a regular sound-change. Instead, it seems
that there was a trend in Old English to coin nicknames for animals ending
in -g, with examples—themselves all of uncertain etymology—
including dog, hog, pig, stag, and (ear)wig. Frog appears to have been
adapted from frosc as part of this trend.[11]

Meanwhile, the word toad, first attested as Old English tādige, is unique to
English and is likewise of uncertain etymology. [14] It is the basis for the
word tadpole, first attested as Middle English taddepol, apparently
meaning 'toad-head'.[15]

Taxonomy

About 88% of amphibian species are classified in the order Anura.[16] These
include over 7,700 species[1] in 59 families, of which the Hylidae (1062
spp.), Strabomantidae (807 spp.), Microhylidae (758 spp.),
and Bufonidae (657 spp.) are the richest in species.[17]

European fire-bellied

toad (Bombina bombina)

The Anura include all modern frogs and any fossil species that fit within
the anuran definition. The characteristics of anuran adults include: 9 or
fewer presacral vertebrae, the presence of a urostyle formed of fused
vertebrae, no tail, a long and forward-sloping ilium, shorter fore limbs than
hind limbs, radius and ulna fused, tibia and fibula fused, elongated ankle
bones, absence of a prefrontal bone, presence of a hyoid plate, a lower
jaw without teeth (with the exception of Gastrotheca guentheri) consisting
of three pairs of bones (angulosplenial, dentary, and mentomeckelian, with
the last pair being absent in Pipoidea),[18] an unsupported
tongue, lymph spaces underneath the skin, and a muscle, the protractor
lentis, attached to the lens of the eye.[19] The anuran larva or tadpole has a
single central respiratory spiracle and mouthparts consisting
of keratinous beaks and denticles.[19]
Panamanian golden
frog (Atelopus zeteki)

Frogs and toads are broadly classified into three


suborders: Archaeobatrachia, which includes four families of primitive
frogs; Mesobatrachia, which includes five families of more evolutionary
intermediate frogs; and Neobatrachia, by far the largest group, which
contains the remaining families of modern frogs, including most common
species throughout the world. The suborder Neobatrachia is further
divided into the two superfamilies Hyloidea and Ranoidea.[20] This
classification is based on such morphological features as the number of
vertebrae, the structure of the pectoral girdle, and the morphology of
tadpoles. While this classification is largely accepted, relationships among
families of frogs are still debated. [21]

Some species of anurans hybridise readily. For instance, the edible


frog (Pelophylax esculentus) is a hybrid between the pool frog (P.
lessonae) and the marsh frog (P. ridibundus).[22] The fire-bellied
toads Bombina bombina and B. variegata are similar in forming hybrids.
These are less fertile than their parents, giving rise to a hybrid zone where
the hybrids are prevalent.[23]

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