“Like all frogs they're carnivores. They will eat a lot of insects. They will also eat anything that they can fit in their mouth. They will even eat smaller tree frogs," a Georgia state official tells the Augusta Chronicle.
An infestation of invasive, cannibal frogs is threatening to wreak havoc in the state of Georgia, both ecologically and economically, according to one state official.
The Cuban tree frog population is rapidly growing in parts of the state, and Daniel Sollenberger, the senior wildlife biologist with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division, tells The Augusta Chronicle that this is one invasive species which could cause some major problems.
That is why Sollenberger is urging residents of Georgia to kill the frogs, noting that their voracious appetite could upend the local ecosystem and even impact the state's economy.
“Like all frogs they're carnivores. They will eat a lot of insects. They will also eat anything that they can fit in their mouth. They will even eat smaller tree frogs," explains Sollenberger. "There's at least some anecdotal evidence from Florida that they actually can reduce populations of native frogs. If we want to have some native wildlife left in our yards, this could be a problem.”
Sollenberger says that two things helping this boom in the frog population are retention ponds and electrical boxes.
The retention ponds serve as their breeding grounds, according to Sollenberger, while the electrical boxes shelter them from the non-tropical climate.
“One thing that they've learned to take advantage of is the things we build our houses out of,” says Sollenberger. “They’ve been known to hide in transformer boxes. Electrical boxes are warmer because of the resistance of the electricity.”
Not to fear though, as Sollenberger says there is also a secret weapon that could slow population growth — Orajel.
"If you find individual frogs in your yard, you can capture and euthanize them," says Sollenberger. "We tell people to put Orajel on their back and that will knock them out.”
The University of Florida says that toothache gel and sunburn spray with at least 20% benzocaine or 5% lidocaine are also effective, and urge that a plastic bag be used when apprehending the frogs.
That leaves just one more step in the process.
"We recommend that you place the treated frog into the freezer for 24 hours to make sure that it is euthanized and will not wake up later in a plastic bag in the garbage," says the school's department of wildlife ecology and conservation.
The Cuban tree frog is larger than most other tree frogs and the females can grow to be the size of a human hand, according to the University of Florida. The frogs also have large toepads, a patch of skin on the head that is fused to the skull, and bumpy skin.
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