Gifts of the Earth: Frogs Trivia Quiz

Answer: China

A frog closure is composed of two separate pieces, one on each side of an opening. It is formed of braid, or other firm ribbon, looped over itself into an ornamental pattern. One side of the closure will have an opening for securing a button or knob from the other side of the closure.

They can also be referred to as button and loop closures. Although the frog is usually associated with Oriental garments, it was adapted for military uniforms in the 17th century even to the present day. (babsr)

Answer: Genghis Frog

While all four options are characters from the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," cartoon, only Genghis Frog and Napoleon Bonafrog were amphibians.

Genghis Frog was named for Genghis Khan, the leader of the Mongol empire who united nomadic tribes of northeast Asia under a single ruler. Eventually the Mongolian Empire would become the largest in the world. It's no wonder that the evil villain Shredder considered him a person to look up to.

Both frog characters were members of the Punk Frogs, a group of four mutant frogs that started out as villains but eventually came to realize the Ninja Turtles were friends, not enemies.

In the same animated show, Baxter Stockman was a scientist and Mutagen Man was a mailman who fell into a vat of mutagen, or ooze, which is the same substance that created all of the mutants in the show. (Shadowmyst2004)

Answer: They are very sensitive to environmental changes.

Frogs and amphibians in general are very sensitive to their surroundings. If there are any environmental changes, such as pollution or global warming, they are usually the first to be affected and to show the effects of those changes. They can make them sick or even kill them.

Frogs and amphibians make such good indicator species because they dwell in the dual environments of water and land. Frogs have a thin skin through which they can breathe, and which is susceptible to absorbing other substances, including toxic chemicals and radiation.

An abundance of frogs and other amphibians in a habitat indicates a healthy environment. Declining frog and amphibian populations are warning signs of a possible environmental concern. (darkgnome101)

Answer: His voice was hoarse and raspy like a frog's croak.

William Robert "Billy" Laughlin appeared in his first "Our Gang" film when he was eight, "The New Pupil". His character had a strange guttural voice similar to a frog's croak. Laughlin's last appearance was in the final "Our Gang" in 1944, "Dancing Romeo". Laughlin actually used his own voice, no dubbing was required.

On August 31, 1948, he was struck by a truck while he was delivering newspapers close to his home in La Puente, California. He died as a result of his injuries at a local hospital, six hours later. He was 16 years old. (darkgnome101)

Answer: Frogger

"Frogger" was developed in 1981 by Konami and distributed in the US by Sega-Gremlin. it quickly became a classic, available both for home use and arcades.

The CPU in the "Frogger" coin-op arcade game used two Z80 processors, making it an early example of dual processor use. (darkgnome101)

Answer: A tadpole

All frogs develop from tadpoles, a name that comes from Middle English "taddepol": "tadde" for toad and "pol" for head. They are often called "polliwogs" which also comes from Middle English for "head wiggle", referring to the big head and long wiggly tail.

The tadpole is the larval stage of a frog, having hatched from an egg, and lives in water breathing through gills. Legs, lungs, and other features of an adult frog develop over time as the tadpole's tail is absorbed and the small mouth lengthens to the same width as the head. Development from egg to frog can take 6 to 12 weeks, but is very species and temperature dependent. Among the four Native American clans (Turtle, Butterfly, Frog, and Thunderbird), Frog Clan members are born in these Moon cycles: Big Winds (Feb 19-March 20), Strong Sun (June 21-July 22) and Freeze Up (Oct 24-Nov 21). (lacybear)

Answer: Michigan

Originally voiced by Bill Roberts in his first appearances, Michigan J. Frog sang and danced his way into the hearts of millions.

After his initial appearance in 1955, he popped up sporadically mostly as background decoration in various Warner Brothers animated movies, shows and shorts. He was most notably in the crowd during scenes in "Space Jam".

In 1995 he got his big break again, when the U.S. television network, The WB, decided to use the character as its mascot, once again bringing the character fame.

He is most often depicted with a cane and top hat. (ShadowMyst2004)

Answer: Cape Fold Mountains, South Africa

The Black Rain frog is actually a very devoted father and stays to guard eggs until they hatch. What might be reasons to be grumpy are alien vegetation or fires in their natural habitat, or being eaten by the local bushpig or colubrid snake. But the frogs' losses overall are low since much of the species range in the southern tip of South Africa is protected.

The genus "Breviceps" comes from "brevis" (short) and "ceps" (headed); the species description "fuscus" means dark or black. (lacybear)

Answer: True

This new frog has a single tonal, long metallic whistle-like sound, more like an insect. Three researchers from the Costa Rican Amphibian Research Center, Brian Kubicki, Stanley Salazar, and Robert Puschendorf, confirmed the find as the 14th species of glass frog known to the area. Kubicki chose the species name in honor of his mother, Janet Diane Kubicki.

The full name means "Diane's bare-hearted glass frog", denoting the translucent belly that makes its internal organs easy to see. Kermit the Frog weighed in by saying "googly eyes run in our family". (lacybear)

Answer: Needlework artists and crafters (rippit, rippit).

Although all answers seem equally plausible and ridiculous, "frogging" is endemic to those involved with textiles and fabrics, specifically when discovering one has made an error somewhere in one's project, and must "rippit" back to correct it. (babsr)