African foam-nest tree frog beats the odds by building nests in the air

For most frogs, survival starts as a numbers game. They lay eggs in water, but fish and insects eat about 98% of them before they can hatch.

The African grey foam-nest tree frog, Chiromantis xerampelina, found a way around that. It took its nursery into the air.

During the rainy season from October to February, the female frog searches for a branch hanging over a pool. She then secretes a special fluid. As she mates with the male, the pair use their hind legs like whisks to churn the secretions into a thick, bubbly froth. The result is a foamy nest stuck to the branch above water. The foam protects the eggs from predators below and keeps them from drying out.

When the tadpoles hatch, they drop straight into the pool underneath.

This airborne strategy gives the species a survival edge that most ground- and water-laying frogs don’t have.