September
20, 2017 by Robyn Mills
Scientists
say that a large, now extinct, frog called Beelzebufo that lived about 68
million years ago in Madagascar would have been capable of eating small
dinosaurs.
The
conclusion comes from a study of the bite force of South American horned frogs
from the living genus Ceratophrys, known as Pacman frogs for their
characteristic round shape and large mouth, similar to the video game character
Pac-Man. Due to their attractive body colouring, voracious appetite, and
comically huge heads, horned frogs are very popular in the international pet
trade.
Published
today in the Nature journal Scientific Reports, the scientists from
University of Adelaide, California State Polytechnic University – Pomona,
University of California – Riverside and UCL, University College London found
that living large South American horned frogs have similar bite forces to those
of mammalian predators.
"Unlike
the vast majority of frogs which have weak jaws and typically consume small
prey, horned frogs ambush animals as large as themselves – including other
frogs, snakes, and rodents. And their powerful jaws play a critical role in
grabbing and subduing the prey," says Dr Marc Jones, researcher at the
University of Adelaide's School of Biological Sciences and honorary researcher
at the South Australian Museum.
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