Frogs who give birth instead of laying eggs – LaRed21

STRANGE KIND

January 4, 2015 at 02:20 h

Frogs with internal fertilization give birth to frogs, miniature replicas of the adults.

“Almost all frogs in the world, more than 6,000 species, have external fertilization , whereby the male expels sperm as the eggs are released by the female” herpetologist Jim McGuire said.

“But there are a lot of strange modifications to this standard pairing mode. This new frog is just one of 10-12 species that has evolved internal fertilization, and of them is the one who gives birth to tadpoles or frogs instead of putting fertilized eggs. “

Frogs have developed an amazing variety of reproductive methods . Indeed, most male frogs fertilizes the eggs after the female lays them. But about a dozen species, including frogs tailed California, developed ways to fertilize the eggs inside the body of the female.

Mechanisms unfamiliar

However, internal fertilization mechanisms are poorly understood least two species of frogs tailed California , one of which has developed a kind of penis-shaped tail that facilitates the transfer of sperm. Tailed frogs lay their fertilized eggs under rocks in streams, but other frogs with internal fertilization give birth to frogs, miniature replicas of the adults.

Although internal fertilization is extremely rare among frogs, there are many other strange reproductive variations. Some frogs carry eggs in bags in the back, tadpoles in bags, or tadpoles transported in holes in the back. The two known species of gastric brooding frog, now extinct, were famous for swallowing their fertilized eggs, which were developed in his stomach, and gave light frogs mouth. Two genera in Africa are also involved in internal fertilization and giving birth to frogs without going through a tadpole stage free life.