168 THE TWO-STRIPED FROG. 



A VERY odd-looking species is the Blue Frog. It is the sole representative of a family, 

 remarkable for having webbed toes, flattened processes of the vertebrae, and glands at the 

 back of the head. 



The Bine Frog, as it is called from its line, inhabits Australia, and is not uncommon at 

 Port Essington, whence several si^ecimens have been brought to Europe. The head of 

 this species is broader than long, the muzzle short and rounded, and the gape very large. 

 The secreting glands at the back of the head are large, and extend in a curve over the ear as 

 far as the shoulder. They are pierced with a lai-ge number of pores, and by their shape and 

 dimensions give to the creature a very singular aspect. The discs of the fore-feet are extremely 

 large, and the toes of the hind-feet are about three-quarters webbed. The color of the Blue 

 Frog is light, uniform blue above, and below silvery-white. Its length is about three inches 

 and a half. 



The large and handsome Bicolored Tree-Frog is the only species at present known as 

 belonging to the family. 



In this creature the toes are not webbed, but in other respects the form resembles that of 

 the preceding family, except, perhaps, that the processes of the vertebra? are wider in pro- 

 portion to their volume. The Bicolored Tree-Frog inhabits South America, Brazil, and Guiana, 

 and seems to be tolerably common. Possibly its bright and boldly contrasting colors render 

 it more conspicuous than its green and olive relatives. The popular name of this creature is 

 very appropriate, as the whole of the upj^er j^arts are intense azure, and the under parts pure 

 white, or white tinged with rose. The thighs and sides are spotted with the same hue as the 

 abdomen. 



Passing over the small section of Frogs {Mkrhi/Iina) distinguishable by their toothed 

 jaws and imperfect ears, and represented by a single species, we come to the third section of 

 these animals {Hylcqjlesura), known by their toothless jaws and perfectly developed ears. 

 Of this section, the Two-striped Frog affords a good example. 



This species is a native of Southern Africa, and is cliiefly found in the eastern and north- 

 eastern parts of the colony of Cape Town. It lives almost entirely upon or in trees, and may 

 be seen either in the cavities of a decaying trunk, or clinging to the bark in close proximity 

 to one of these holes. 



In Dr. A. Smith's " Illustrations of the Zoology of Southern Africa," there is so curious 

 and important an account of the iinprisonment of tins species in the bole of a tree, that it 

 must be given in his own words : — 



"On the banks of the Limpopo River, close to the tropic of Capricorn, a massive tree was 

 cut down to obtain wood to repair a wagon. The workman, while sawing the trunk longi- 

 tudinally, nearly along its centre, remarked on reaching a certain point — ' It is hollow, and 

 will not answer the purpose for which it is wanted.' 



"He persevered, however, and when a division into equal halves w^as effected, it was 

 discovered that the saw in its course had crossed a large hole, in which were five specimens of 

 tlie species just tiescribed, each about an inch in length. Every exertion was made to discover 

 a means of communication between the external air and the cavity, but without success. 

 Every point of the latter was pi-obed with the utmost care, and water was left in each half for 

 a considerable time, without any passing into the wood. Tlie inner surface of the cavity 

 was black, as if charred, and so was likewise the adjoining wood for half an inch from the 

 cavity. 



"The tree, at the i^art where the latter existed, was nineteen inches in diameter, the 

 length of the trunk was eighteen feet ; the age, which was observed at the time, I regret to 

 say, does not appear to have been noted. AVhen the Batrachia above mentioned were dis- 

 covered, they appeai-ed inanimate, but the influence of a warm sun, to which they Avere sub- 

 jected, soon imparted to them a moderate degree of vigor. In a few hours from the time they 

 were liberated, they were tolerably active, and able to move from place to place, apparently 

 with great ease." 



