American bullfrog

A couple of weeks ago, we received a call about an extraordinarily large frog in someone's backyard. The resident who called was quite worried, concerned that the animal might be poisonous to her little dog. She was also unnerved by the frog's size and that it just sat there, on her back porch, staring into the house.

The American bullfrog is not toxic or poisonous, in fact, they are the most commonly farmed frog - for frog legs.

The American bullfrog is native to the central and eastern states of the U.S. In the west, however, the bullfrog is an invasive species, and can be extremely damaging to ecosystems.

The bullfrog has a voracious appetite and will consume any living animal that fits into its mouth, including other amphibians, small mammals, and birds. They also have the propensity to spread the chytrid fungus, a lethal skin disease of amphibians that has decimated frog species around the world.

Even so, California still allows the importation of several million bullfrogs each year. Recently, though, Santa Cruz, California, banned the importation, sale, and release of bullfrogs.

Since the bullfrog we collected cannot be released, we are looking to place her, ideally, in a zoo or aquarium where she can serve to educate others about her species. If you have any leads, please contact us.