Cannibal tree frogs from Cuba are invading parts of the US – and conservationists are urging people to kill the amphibians on the spot.
The warning is due to the fact that human-sized frogs are eating frogs native to North America, which would lead to 'ecological problems.'
The invasive creature also “secretes an irritating fluid from its skin when touched,” with consequences for humans or small animals that are “understudied.”
Wildlife managers are still unsure how far north this tropical cannibal frog, which migrated through Florida from Cuba, the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas, will spread.
State biologists have reported that some Cuban tree frogs have hitchhiked as far north as Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are quickly devising strategies to survive the winter.
Biologists with Georgia's Wildlife Resources Division have issued an all-points bulletin for an invasive frog they fear could cause “ecological problems” in the South. The carnivorous Cuban tree frog threatens to eat its competitors as it pushes them out of the food chain
“One thing they've learned from,” said the wildlife biologist with Georgia's Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division, “is the stuff we build our houses out of.”
“They are known to hide in transformer boxes,” said senior wildlife biologist Daniel Sollenberger, who specializes in herpetology, or the study of reptiles and amphibians.
“Electrical boxes are warmer because of the resistance of the electricity,” Sollenberger said the Augustan Chroniclewhich gives the tree frogs shelter from the cold.
The only known “breeding population” of Cuban tree frogs in Georgia is on Jekyll Island, the coastal state park 50 miles north of Florida.
And Georgia's Jekyll Island Authority, the governing body charged with managing Jekyll Island State Park, has encouraged visitors to keep an eye out for the Cuban tree frog. through their hotline.
But the cannibal tree frogs are adept at migrating, according to Sollenberger, especially by hiding in loads of houseplants and vegetation sold for gardening and landscaping purposes.
But state biologists report that some Cuban tree frogs have hitchhiked as far north as Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are quickly devising strategies to survive the winter.
“They are transported on vehicles or farms,” Sollenberger said.
“For example, if you go to Lowe's and buy a tree and that tree comes from a nursery in Florida, you may have a Cuban tree frog hitching a ride on it.”
The senior wildlife biologist told local reporters that residents of more coastal cities such as Brunswick and Savannah, Georgia have witnessed cannibal frogs.breed in retention ponds and ditches', but it is unclear whether the frogeaters will crawl westwards.
“We don't know how far inland they can go,” Sollenberger said, “because they are somewhat tropical.”
Although the Cuban tree frog's omnivorous, meaty diet is something it shares with all other frogs, its interest in eating its own kind is rare and partly a testament to its large adult size.
“They eat a lot of insects,” Sollenberger said. “(But) they will also eat anything they can put in their mouths. They even eat smaller tree frogs.'
“There is at least some anecdotal evidence from Florida,” he added, “that they can actually reduce populations of native frogs.”
“If we want to keep some native wildlife in our garden, this could be a problem.”
James Stroud, an assistant professor of biology at the Georgia Institute of Technology, told DailyMail.com that he agrees these concerns are justified.
“In Louisiana, where they were first listed as invasive in 2017,” Stroud wrote via email, “it appears that native frogs are subsequently disappearing from those areas. This could be due to predation or competition with the invasive Cuban tree frogs.”
“It is possible that Cuban tree frogs will pose a new ecological threat to protected insect species in Georgia,” Stroud noted.
“Cuban tree frogs can also secrete an irritating fluid from their skin when touched,” he advised DailyMail.com.
'While this is not known to be toxic to humans or small animals, the wider ecological implications in novel environments remain under-researched.'
Sollenberger records reports of Cuban tree frog sightings and can be reached by email at: daniel.sollenberger@dnr.ga.gov
Georgia's Jekyll Island Authority wildlife hotline, which also tracks the frog, can be reached at: (912) 222-5992