Tiny frog claimed as smallest vertebrate ever

Boffins have found what they believe to be the world's smallest vertebrate. The tiny amphibian was discovered when scientists grabbed some leaves from the forest floor in Papua New Guinea and shoved them in a plastic bag. With an average body size of 7.7mm (0.27 inches), the translucent nano-frogs sit easily on a US dime ( …

[mike 32]

Wow. Just wow.

Where normal frogs eat normal insects, tiny frogs eat tiny insects.

[Olafthemighty]

Yup.

Exactly the sort of determined journalism that keeps me coming back here - you don't get that kind of insight from the Beeb!

[Annihilator]

Kissing

If we accept that kissing a frog turns it into a Prince, are we to assuming that kissing such a small frog would turn into pint-size-pop-star Prince?

[Fred Flintstone]

Here's your answer - from Belgium

http://album.hbvl.be/foto/Cartoons/id355470-120113-klier-cartoon-1-jpg.aspx

Translation:

"Hey Laura, do you remember that small frog I kissed this afternoon?

His frog size wasn't the only miniature part"

:)

[Bill Fresher]

How big are the tadpoles?

[Brent Longborough]

I name this Frog

Sarkozy!

[Anonymous Coward]

You sure chose the right icon

for your pathetic sub-jim-davidson offensive clichéd stereotype, or, as you probably thought of it, "joke".

[Silverburn]

@ AC

Given the accumulated downvotes so far, I say your humour-bypass should have used this icon too.

[Steve Evans]

@Brent

Depends, does it generally look shifty and do a lot of shrugging?

[h4rm0ny]

Soooooo cute!

See title.

[Evil Auditor]

Yes, cute.

But how do its legs taste?

[Fred Flintstone]

short..

[ArmanX]

I attempted to find out this very thing!

After catching and preparing one of these tiny frogs, I decided the legs tasted like the sauce I cooked them in. I assume that, anyway, because I couldn't actually find them. I'm going to need more frogs for a more conclusive test. A few thousand of these little guys aught to make a meal.

Ah, yes - mine's the one with the nearly microscopic take-out bag in the pocket, thank you.

[Camilla Smythe]

Hmmmm

Just the right size to fit in a Smartie.

[Richard Ball]

Then there would really be substance to the claim that some colours tase different to others.

[TeeCee]

The lark's vomit coloured ones taste of crunchy frog, as you would expect.

[Michael H.F. Wilkinson]

And filleting them is out of the question, of course.

[DavidK]

Am I right in thinking

that there is a real frog in 'ere?

[Anonymous Noel Coward]

And I, for one, welcome our tiny frog overlords...

[Martin]

Underlords?

[Anonymous Coward]

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Adorable ... so small and perfectly formed!

[Ragarath]

Was I not looking?

When they changed the definition of similar to the same as that given to exact?

[Dan 37]

""18mm, making it similar in size to the UK five pence coin"

really? cos the 5p's I've got appear to be 17mm"

This probably explains the choice of the term 'similar' rather than 'identical' or 'the same'

[JDX]

You're so right Mark. 17 and 18 and not even slightly similar.

[mark 63]

ah you spotted my deliberate mistake!

nah i read 'simila'r as 'smaller' , then spotted my mistake and tried to withdraw it but that didnt work , so withdrew it now , which i shouldnt have once it had been replied too.

wot a nob! , I'll get me coat. . . . .

[Pete the not so great]

Cool, but

is it crunchy?

[Silverburn]

Technical question...

...how short do vertibrae need to get, before they constitute 'grit' rather than 'bone'?

Enquiring minds must know.

[jonathan keith]

Paedophryne amauensis

I expect there are mobs of angry, thick tabloid readers heading to the rainforest right now.

[Galidron]

That was my first thought also.

[Feldspa]

a new unit of size?

Does this now offer a new reg size unit?

[Anonymous Coward]

And they still...

...have more backbone than the Democratic party.

[Brent Longborough]

And they still...

... have more brains than the Republican party.

[sisk]

And they still...

...have more integrety than both the Democratic and Republican parties combined.

[Ken Hagan]

Re: Re: Re: And they still...

...have eleven months to go.

[Darryl]

Gee, thanks Ken

I was having a pretty OK day until you reminded me.

[Anonymous Coward]

I should note, given the thumbs-downed-ness, that my post was from a weary and depressed Democrat, not a smug Republican. It's hard to go through a period of bend-over-and-pants-down-for-the-tea-party party like the debt ceiling thing and come out with your head held high.

For one thing, it's tough to stand up straight.

At any rate, here's hoping that Mitt "Bain Of My Existence" Romney is defeated not because he's wealthy, and not because he's Mormon, and not because he looks kinda creepy when you take a picture of him from a low angle, but because he'd make a lousy damn president. So there, throw a thumbs down on that!

[Anonymous Coward]

However.......

...in 6 months time they strangely will be the same size as normal frogs....

Wadda ya mean they are baby frogs!

[Charlie van Becelaere]

It's been 'shopped

I can tell by the pixels.

[Eddy Ito]

Nice!

Judging from those x-ray pics the spine looks particularly stout in comparison to the other bones but it would be nice to have a side on shot for a full comparison. Better yet, how about a full 3d scan... so does anyone see a pocket CT at CES?

[Javc]

@Ito

>>Better yet, how about a full 3d scan... so does anyone see a pocket CT at CES?

I'll get my medical tricorder.

[Stuart Halliday]

Well let's hope the scientists didn't wipe up the entire species like the scientists did when the arm waving golden frog was discovered.

Chyrid Fungus is deadly.

[Drew V.]

Yup

This one has absolutely no chance of surviving the human species, does it? Not unless it reproduces at the rate of the more successful insects.

[Anonymous Coward]

I think you will find the world's smallest backbone in one T Blair.

..... and mine for an anon post.

[Anonymous Coward]

Tony Blair's spine

Funny, I'd always assumed he had none at all.

[Martin Maloney]

Yes, I should be ashamed

Miss Piggy's phone rings, and she picks it up.

"[cough cough cough] I'm sorry -- I had a frog in my throat."