Overview
- Kobe University ecologist Shinji Sugiura reports in Ecosphere that frogs attacked and ate workers of Vespa simillima, V. analis, and V. mandarinia at rates of 93%, 87%, and 79% respectively.
- Frogs were repeatedly stung, including in the mouth and eyes, yet showed no observable injury or mortality following the encounters.
- Controlled laboratory trials used single-use adult frogs matched in size to hornet workers to test active predation rather than sting avoidance.
- Larger frogs were more likely to succeed, and study images documented hornet stingers embedded in frogs’ mouths during feeding.
- Researchers plan follow-up experiments to measure tolerance thresholds and test other arthropod venoms, with the KAKENHI-funded work positioning these frogs as potential model organisms.