Froggy Style: New Sex Position Discovered Among Frogs and Toads
June 14, 2016 - Believe it or not, among the nearly 7,000 species of frogs and toads worldwide, just six mating positions were known. But now scientists have discovered a new position, unique to the Bombay night frog. And while males in most species usually release sperm and females simultaneously lay their eggs during amplexus, the Bombay night frog has no contact between the sexes during egg laying and fertilization. The species, which lives in the Western Ghats mountain range in India, is also unique in that females will call during breeding season, a behavior only known in 25 frog species.
Read more about the latest addition to "frog Kama Sutra."Video footage courtesy SD Biju
Illustrations adapted from Duellman and Trueb, 1986
Associate Producer: Jed Winer
Source: Bert Willaert et al.,
PeerJ, 2016
Music: Stock media provided by jdgehlert /
Pond5.com
When it’s time to mate, these amphibians have a new way of doing it.
Previously, only six mating positions were known in the world of frog and toad sex.
But scientists have described a new mating position in the Bombay night frog.
The male mounts the female and grabs onto a nearby leaf or branch.
That's the new froggie style, which scientists have named the “dorsal straddle."
The male then appears to release sperm onto the female’s back.
Once he moves away, the female lays her eggs, which are fertilized by the sperm trickling down her back.
