About Ranoidea dahlii (Boulenger, 1896)
Dahl's aquatic frog, scientifically known as Ranoidea dahlii, is a frog species belonging to the subfamily Pelodryadinae that is endemic to Australia. Its natural habitats include dry savanna, subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland, freshwater lakes, intermittent freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, and intermittent freshwater marshes. It was once believed that this species could eat cane toad eggs, tadpoles, and young without suffering harmful effects, as the invasive, venomous cane toad is not native to Australia. However, this original idea came from a small number of captive frogs that survived encounters with young cane toads. In reality, adult Dahl's aquatic frogs usually regurgitate young cane toads after eating them, and will avoid eating cane toads in the future after this experience. Rarely, adults will swallow young cane toads, and approximately half of these adults die from the encounter. Compared to other Australian hylid frog species, Dahl's aquatic frog does not show increased resistance to bufotoxins, the toxin produced by cane toads. If an individual survives its first meal that includes a cane toad, it will actively avoid eating cane toads afterwards.
