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The frog has a sticky tongue that folds backwards, toward its throat. The frog can whip this sticky muscle out of its mouth, snap up a fly and gulp it down before the fly even knows it isn't flying anymore.

How does this amphibian get that tongue out there so fast? The tongue is attached to the front of the mouth, instead of the back. This means the tongue's anchor, and so strength, lies at the front of the frog's mouth, not the back. This allows the frog to catapult his tongue outward, much as a human would use his wrist, not his shoulder, to snap a whip.

The stickiness of the frog's tongue means that fly is stuck on there. Frogs also like worms, and bugs in general. Since the frog doesn't have fingers and so can't pick up his meals, the anatomy of his tongue proves very useful.

Unfortunately, a frog's tongue doesn't do much for him when a snake decides to make a snack of him.

Learn more about this author, Shelly Mcrae.
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