NAPLES, FLORIDA — Newspapers in Florida are reporting that Florida now has yet another invasive species to worry about.
This time it’s a frog with sharp claws, which it uses to tear up its prey.
Florida is already suffering from a flood of invasive Burmese pythons, iguanas, giant tegu lizards, lionfish and other exotic animals that are decimating local wildlife.
Formally known as the Tropical Clawed Frog, the small amphibian has protruding eyes, a flattened body, and short talons attached to each limb.
These frogs are voracious eaters, mostly snacking on insects.
However, they will sometimes eat tadpoles and young frogs of other species.
Originally from West Africa, these frogs threaten to unbalance Florida's fragile ecosystems as they compete with native species for food and other resources.
Professor Christina Romagosa of Florida University says this newest invader represents yet another disturbance to Florida’s aquatic ecosystems, which are already vulnerable due to habitat destruction, pollution, invasive species and disease.
SOURCES: Naples News, Science Times, Futurity.org
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