Frog's tongue 'can lift three times own body weight'

By Jonathan WebbScience reporter, BBC News

New research shows that the pulling force of a frog's tongue can be up to three times the animal's own weight.

Zoologists placed the horned frog, a predator known to swallow whole mice, in front of a glass slide and tempted it with a tasty cricket.

Stronger pulling forces were measured when contact with the glass was briefer and less mucus was left behind.

The study, from the journal Scientific Reports, suggests the action of the tongue is similar to sticky tape.

"It's the first time we've ever measured how well frog tongues stick," said Dr Thomas Kleinteich, who performed the experiments at the University of Kiel in Germany.

Dr Kleinteich works in a group that studies biological adhesives, including gecko and beetle feet, with a view to finding new designs for sticky applications like boot soles, tapes and parcel closures.

"The thing that's interesting about frog tongues is that they're really fast," he told BBC News. "It only takes milliseconds."

The South American horned frog in particular, a popular pet, is known for its ability to snatch morsels up to half its own size - from locusts and fish to other amphibians and small rodents.

Continued and video