Dancing with the Devil Toad

Scientists dug up a new dinosaur recently in Madagascar, an armored, toothy predator that surely sent smaller creatures running away millions of years ago. A new type of velociraptor, perhaps, or T-Rex? No, they found a T-Ribbit: a massive, ten-pound, 16 inch long, bad-tempered frog. The dusty, eons-old remains were still intimidating enough that the scientists named it the ‘Devil Toad,’ and believe it is related to some far-flung amphibians in South America, namely the big-mouthed ‘Pacman’ frogs. While today’s hoppers no longer have menacing teeth, protective bone armor, or a glandular problem that makes them as big as bowling balls, they do have the same yawning yappers.

In an age when even the bugs were scary, Devil Toad is believed to have gone after many types of prey, including hatchling dinosaurs. In high-school terms, this was one bully who would give you a wedgie, stuff you into a trash can, then cram the whole thing into your locker on the last day before spring break. Eeee-villlll.

While this was one toad you definitely wouldn’t want to lick, I’m sure a few folks have tried to imagine how many dino frog legs would fit in the average frying pan, but they haven’t considered how many fingers you’d lose in the process while dancing with the Devil Toad.