What is a Frogmouth? (updated 2023)
- Is it a frog?
- Is it a bird?
- Is it a bird that eats frogs?
- Is it a frog with a big mouth
It is actually a family of birds with huge mouths. Frogs have big mouths compared to the size of their bodies, and so do these birds. Some of them eat frogs.
Species and Range
There are 14 species of frogmouths in India, Southeast Asia, Australia, and the Solomon Islands.
In Daytime
Frogmouths are primarily nocturnal. They have a very cryptic colouring that camouflages them during the day. They often rest horizontally on branches. These two factors make them very difficult to find. However, the good news is that if you are lucky enough to find one, they will not fly away, making them easy to photograph if only you can spot them.
Tawny Frogmouth
The Tawny Frogmouth is one of the larger species of frogmouths, measuring 34 to 53 cm (13 to 21 inches). They have large, black and yellow eyes, like an owl.
Sitting lengthwise on a branch, they look like part of a tree, and most people can walk very close to them without noticing them.
The Tawny Frogmouth is widespread throughout most of Australia except rainforests and deserts. They are often found in city parks.
Their diet consists mainly of nocturnal insects such as moths, but they also eat worms, spiders, beetles, wasps, ants, centipedes and other insects. They sometimes eat small animals such as mice, reptiles, frogs and baby birds. They start hunting at dusk and can catch prey on the ground or in flight. Small insects are swallowed when caught, but larger prey such as mice, reptiles or frogs are taken to a tree and killed before consumption. The frogmouth will bash their prey against a tree branch until they die.
Tawny Frogmouths mate for life, and they roost very close together during the day.
The main threats to their life are car collisions at night and also by domestic cats when they land to catch prey on the ground.
Papuan Frogmouth
Papuan Frogmouths are sexually dimorphic. The males are grey, while the females are brown. They have red eyes, but you will probably never see them as they will be sleeping during the day and will not open their eyes unless disturbed. They are strictly nocturnal. They eat primarily large insects on the ground.
The Papuan Frogmouth is the largest of the 14 frogmouth species, with an average length of 53 cm (21 in). They can be found in the Cape York Peninsula of Queensland, Australia, New Guinea, and nearby islands in Indonesia.
Summary
The frogmouth, with its big mouth and habit of bashing its prey to death, is not your average cute bird that everyone loves, such as robins or parrots. Nor would you call them majestic, like an eagle. Except in Australia, most people have never even heard of them. You have to be very lucky to spot them for photography. Still, I find them, like all wildlife, fascinating. If you are ever in Australia or SE Asia, try finding them.