Frogs are well known for their hops, and their ability to swim with great efficiency. But have you ever wondered just how fast frogs can move through their environments?
In general, frogs can move at speeds of about 10 mph on land when hopping at full momentum. However, how fast frogs can move depends on several factors such as species, age, sex, and the terrain they are moving through.
Most frogs move faster in the water than they do on land, due to their streamlined bodies, webbed feet, and powerful hind legs for propulsion.
Most Frog Species Are Specialized for Jumping or Swimming
Frogs and toads move by jumping, swimming, climbing, walking, or even gliding – depending on the species or the environment.
Terrestrial Frogs Are Usually Specialized for Jumping
The vast majority of frogs that spend the majority of their time on land are typically specialized to move through their habitats by jumping, leaping, or hopping.
They have elongated bones in their muscular and powerful back legs that enable them to jump high and far.
Some terrestrial frogs, such as tree frogs spend most of their time in and around trees – and are highly adapted for this arboreal lifestyle. They have small light bodies and large, round toe pads that help them cling to branches.
Aquatic, and Semi-aquatic Frogs Are Well Adapted for Swimming
Frogs that spend a significant amount of their time in the water, on the other hand, are well adapted for swimming.
The vast majority of frog species are excellent swimmers, whether they spend most of their time on land, or in the water. However, highly aquatic frogs are particularly good swimmers.
They have extensive webbing between their toes, streamlined bodies, and powerful hind legs to propel themselves through the water.
When a frog kicks its legs in unison, it generates a forward thrust that propels it through the water.
Although most frogs have some webbing on their feet, highly aquatic species like the African clawed frog tend to have more webbing that goes all the way to the end of their toes.
This is in contrast to more terrestrial species, like tree frogs, that usually have smaller pads of webbing on their feet.
How Fast Can Frogs Move on Land?
The speed at which a frog moves is determined using a combination of how fast a frog can fast a frog can hop, and the distance covered by a single leap.
Although there are variations among species, most frogs can move at speeds of up to 10 mph on land.
Frogs can move fairly quickly by repeatedly leaping large distances.
These amphibians can cover impressive distances in a single leap. For example, American bullfrogs can jump up to 7 feet in a single leap, and Green tree frogs can jump over 10 feet!
In general, most frogs can jump from 5 to 20 times their body length, but some frogs can jump up to 50 times their length.
This is the human equivalent of jumping the length of a football field without a running start.
The Guinness World Record record for the longest leap by a frog relative to body size is held by the South African sharp-nosed frog (Ptychadena oxyrhynchus).
At the 1975 Calaveras County frog-jumping contest in California, USA, one of these frogs leaped 5.35 meters (17 feet 6 inches); which is more than 90 times its own body length.
Below Is a Table That Shows Approximately How Far 6 Frog Species Can Jump Relative to Body Size.
Frog Species |
Scientific Name |
Jumping Distance |
Body Size |
| American Bullfrog | Lithobates catesbeianus | 4 – 7 feet | 3.5-6 inches |
| Northern Leopard frog | Lithobates pipiens | 3 – 6 feet | 2 – 4 inches |
| Northern Cricket Frog | Acris crepitans | 3 – 6 feet | 0.5-1.25 inches |
| Pickerel Frog | Lithobates palustris | 3 -6 feet | 1.75-4 inches |
| Green Tree Frog | Hyla cinerea | 8 – 10 feet | 1.75-2.5 inches |
| Spring Peeper | Pseudacris crucifer | 1 – 1.5 feet | 0.7 to 1.2 inches |
It is important to note that most frogs generally move with intermittent bursts of movement, rather than a stream of consistent speed.
Most frogs will have short jumps, with occasional long ones, and pauses in between jumps.
Additionally, some frogs may have a decrease in the length of jump over large distances, possibly due to fatigue.
Most Frogs Are Faster in the Water Than on Land
Most frogs are generally faster in the water in the water than are on land. Aquatic frogs, in particular, are very fast swimmers – and are generally faster in the water than terrestrial or arboreal species.
Some aquatic frog species can swim at speeds of more than 30 mph in short bursts – under certain conditions.
Swimming is a less demanding form of movement than jumping. There are also usually fewer obstacles to movement in the water, compared to on land.
Frogs have a universal joint at the knee to enable significant internal rotation of the knee joint.
This rotational degree of freedom means that frogs are able to align their legs for a very strong kick.
By drawing their legs directly to the body and thrusting the legs directly behind them, frogs are able to generate significant force to propel themselves through the water.
The webbed feet act as the main propulsive unit, pushing large volumes of water behind. This creates thrust and propels the frogs streamlined body forward.
One study found that aquatic frogs had swimming methods that were generally faster, and more energy efficient – than the swimming styles used by terrestrial frogs.
Factors That Affect How Fast a Frog Can Move
1. Species
Foot shape and motion patterns differ by species, and some frog species are able to jump or swim faster than others.
For example, Green tree frogs can hop more than 8 feet and are generally faster than Mexican burrowing toads, which can only hop a few inches.
2. Age
Young frogs that have not yet reached sexual maturity are generally slower than mature frogs.
This is mainly due to their smaller body size, and weaker leg muscles.
2. Sex
Most frogs exhibit Sexual dimorphism, and males are smaller than females.
This difference in size means males are often much lighter than females, and may be able to move quicker.
3. Terrain
The terrain and surface conditions a frog is moving through can influence its speed.
In one study, leopard frogs (Lithobates pipiens) were found to have different jump lengths on muddy, and grassy surfaces.
The Frogs That Can Fly
Some frogs, such as those of the genus Rhacophorus, are known as ‘flying frogs’ or ‘gliding frogs’. These frogs can go long distances at a fast pace, by ‘flying’,
These frogs don’t truly fly, as birds or bats do. What they do is glide—somewhat like humans piloting a hang glider.
When threatened or in search of prey, flying frogs launch their lightweight bodies from a high branch into the air. They spread out their large webbed feet and hands, as well as special flaps of skin on their legs and arms.
These membranes of skin act like miniature parachutes to slow the frog’s descent
Some flying frogs glide as far as 40 or 50 feet to a neighboring tree branch or even all the way to the ground. They also have oversized toe pads to help them land softly and stick to tree trunks.
Gliding is an energy-efficient way to get quickly move from one place to another.
Common Questions:
How fast can frogs swim?
Most frogs can swim faster than they can move on land. Depending on several factors, most frogs can swim at speeds more than 15 mph, but some aquatic frog species can swim at speeds of more than 30 mph in short bursts – under certain conditions.
What is the fastest frog in the world?
There have been no official scientific studies to determine what the fastest frog is. However, Goliath frogs (Conraua goliath), the largest frogs in the world, are known to also be one of the fastest. These frogs can jump almost 10 feet forward.
Conclusion
Frogs are not fast animals on land, but they sometimes are surprisingly fast in the water.
How fast a frog can move is mainly influenced by the species, age, sex, and terrain.
In general, frogs with longer hind legs have greater jumping ability and can move faster than frogs with shorter hind legs.
Sources:
Rand, A. S. (1952). Jumping Ability of Certain Anurans, with Notes on Endurance. Copeia, 1952(1), 15–20. https://doi.org/10.2307/1437615
Fan Jizhuang, Zhang Wei, Yuan Bowen, Liu Gangfeng; Propulsive efficiency of frog swimming with different feet and swimming patterns. Biol Open 15 April 2017; 6 (4): 503–510. doi: https://doi.org/10.1242/bio.022913
Cynthia Bix and Diana Landa (1996). Flying Frog: Glider in the Treetops. Animal Athletes: Olympians of the Wild World (PDF).