Flying frog
group of amphibians with the same common name
A flying frog (also called a gliding frog) is a frog that has the ability to achieve gliding flight. This means it can descend at an angle less than 45° relative to the horizontal. Other nonflying arboreal frogs can also descend, but only at angles greater than 45°, which is referred to as parachuting.
Evolution
Gliding flight has evolved independently several times among frogs from both New World (Hylidae) and Old World (Rhacophoridae) families. This parallel evolution is seen as an adaptation to their life in trees, high above the ground. Characteristics of the Old-World species include "enlarged hands and feet, full webbing between all fingers and toes, lateral skin flaps on the arms and legs, and reduced weight per snout-vent length". These morphological changes contribute to the flying frogs' aerodynamic abilities.
Taxonomy
Alfred Russel Wallace made one of the earliest reports of a flying frog. The species he observed was later described by George Albert Boulenger as Rhacophorus nigropalmatus.
Flying or gliding frogs includes members of these genera:
Agalychnis (Hylidae)
Ecnomiohyla (Hylidae)
Polypedates (Rhacophoridae)
Zhangixalus (Rhacophoridae)
There are 380 species of flying frogs.
“Flying frog” enters the record as group of amphibians with the same common name. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Flying, frog and group can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Flying frog” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Flying, frog and group provides the most credible route into that argument.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 3, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2297725. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Flying frog”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Flying frog primary sources, Flying frog archive and Flying research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Flying frog”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Flying frog” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.