Jun 26, 2007

What Do I Do?

No, that's not a coaster or an ash tray. You're looking at discophus guinetti. I've done some poking around, and I can't find out much on this species. Most of the websites that discuss this frog are in French, and Google's recommending that I go with dyscophus guinetti. What do I do? All I know is that this guy looks like something I would have made for my mom in ceramics class in middle school.

Thanks for the link, Rasmus

UPDATE: It looks like most of you agree that this is a tomato frog or false tomato frog. Thanks all.

Photo from: Batraciens.net

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

If you go to the site in the Batraciens link and translate "grenouilles tomates", they are "tomato frogs" and there's quite a bit of info on them. But none that I could find explains why this guy in the photo (Dyscophus guineti) looks so flat. They secrete a mucous for protection and it looks like this guy was doing a little phlegming when this photo was taken. Snotty frog...

Anonymous said...

This is the grossest thing I've seen in a while. It looks like someone lopped off the top of the frog to reveal his meaty insides, which resemble an uncooked hamburger patty which is wrong wrong wrong. Perhaps if I just think of this frog as a coaster with an attitude, I will be able to sleep tonight.

Anonymous said...

They're actually kind of pretty most of the time--brilliant red, shiny--this one looks really weird.
And it'll be weeks before I cook another hamburger.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, what they said.

Actually it looks like this is a "false tomato frog;" the "real" Tomato frog is Dyscophus antongili. But that still doesn't explain why this one looks like someone didn't quite finish stepping on him...

Anonymous said...

I belive that's an edited photo. There are many repeated patterns on it's back. Classic sign of clone-stamp usage. Bad clone-stamp usage.

Arachnophile said...

Yeah, my first thought was, "AAAHHhh, lawn-mower-mishap!"

I have to look at other pictures of this species before. Now I'm curious. :)

Burgundee said...

When I worked at a pet store they sold these and Pac-man frogs (Horned Toads). Everything was fine until some minimum wage genius decided to put them in the same aquarium together. Not only are they highly agressive to other toads-- but they are relentlessly cannabalistic.

I don't think people understand how big these things or Pac-man frogs get, or pac-man frogs. They get so big they'll need to eat mice. Don't buy one for your eight-year-old!

Anonymous said...

I keep coming back to look at this just to creep myself out over and over. For my own peace of mind I going to think that he's flat because of the clone-stamp issue tyrel mentioned. Still doesn't explain why he's sitting on a bed of Cocoa Krispies...

Anonymous said...

lux -- IMO their rather ponderous adult size is one of the things makes pac-mans, tomato frogs and other "mouths with legs" so endearing -- some of my favorite frogs are pixies, which get roughly the size of a half a basketball.

Still, I don't recommend selling them to eight-year-olds, either ... Or selling basically anything living to to eight-year-olds, for that matter.

Anonymous said...

Eww.

Anonymous said...

Actually this isn't a 'false' tomato frog as people claim, it is a sumbavan tomato frog. 'False' isn't an accurate name and is another example of common names in the amphibian world meaning precisely jack. This animal should only be referred to as Dyscophus guinetti. And this has been altered as they aren't flat. Also they do get to a similar size as some species of horned frogs, but shouldn't be fed anything near equivalent size as a them. There is a reason they fall under the group known as narrow mouthed frogs.