--- title: "Goliath Frog (Conraua goliath) | AnimalTracks.wiki" description: "The largest frog in the world, where males haul rocks to build nests for their eggs." image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/goliath-frog-1.webp" published: "2026-10-11" updated: "2026-10-11" --- # Goliath Frog (*Conraua goliath*) > **Status**: Checked against 4 sources, listed under Sources below. > **Tagline**: The largest frog in the world, where males haul rocks to build nests for their eggs. > **Soundtrack Vibe**: Heavy Psych & Desert Rock // Earthless, "Sonic Prayer" > **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/6rR2OLJEon7xtWoGZ1O8de) > **Vibe Match**: The largest frog in the world has no vocal sac, and the males haul rocks and gravel to build nests. Sonic Prayer is a long, wordless heavy-rock jam where the guitars do the lifting. ## Biological Superpowers & Stats - **Taxonomy**: *Conraua goliath* - **Danger Level**: Low - **Conservation Status**: Endangered ([IUCN Red List](https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2019-1.rlts.t5263a96062132.en)) - **Superpower**: Males build rock and gravel nests and wrestle rivals - **Habitat**: Rainforest rivers and waterfalls in Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon - **Diet**: Insects, crustaceans, fish and other amphibians - **Tags**: amphibian, river, rainforest, giant-size, endangered ## Natural History & Behavior ## Rock haulers and wrestlers The male goliath frog builds a nest of rocks and gravel near a riverbank. He also wrestles other males to win the right to breed with females. The wrestling and rock moving may be why males are larger than females, which is unusual for frogs. Then the female lays her eggs in the nest, and that is where the parenting stops. The adults do not wait around to see whether the eggs hatch. A goliath tadpole starts out the same size as the tadpole of an average frog, but it just keeps growing. Tadpoles are picky eaters and only eat a certain plant found near waterfalls and the banks of swift rivers. ## As big as some house cats The goliath frog is the largest frog in the world. Its body is 20 to 30 centimeters long, and it stretches up to 75 centimeters when its legs are extended. The heaviest weigh up to 3.3 kilograms, as big as some house cats, though the average frog is far lighter: in a study of wild frogs in Cameroon, males averaged 1.49 kilograms and females 745 grams. It can jump almost 3 meters forward. A goliath frog may live up to 15 years. > **No vocal sac** > For all its size, the largest frog in the world has no vocal sac. ## Night shift on the rapids This frog is endemic to Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon, which means it lives nowhere else. There it keeps to small patches of equatorial rainforest near swift-moving rivers and waterfalls. Goliath frogs come out at night and sit on river rocks to look for food. An adult eats insects, crustaceans, fish and other amphibians. One scientist even found a bat in the stomach of a goliath frog. A study of 65 frogs from hunters in Cameroon's Littoral region found plant leaves and stems in their stomachs as well, and its authors called the goliath frog an omnivore, an animal that eats both plants and animals. A separate study, also in Cameroon's Littoral region, examined blood from 78 goliath frogs and found microfilariae, a type of blood parasite, in 33 of them. Heavier frogs carried more of them. ## A big meal in a shrinking forest The IUCN Red List lists the goliath frog as Endangered. Hunting it is against the law, but poachers still do it to sell the meat. The frogs are also losing forest to farming, logging and human settlements, and that adds extra soil to their breeding streams. Scientists find that adult frogs weigh less than expected these days. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How heavy is a goliath frog? The biggest weigh up to 3.3 kilograms, but the average frog is much lighter. One Cameroon study found wild males averaging just under 1.5 kilograms, and females about half that. *(Source: [Nguete Nguiffo et al. 2019]())* ### Do goliath frogs eat plants? Yes, at least in part. Researchers who opened the stomachs of frogs from Cameroon found a mix of animal prey and leaves and stems, and concluded the species is an omnivore that eats what its surroundings offer. *(Source: [Monthe Moumegni et al. 2021]())* ### Why is the goliath frog in trouble? People hunt it for meat even though that is now illegal, and farming, logging and settlements are eating its forest. That adds soil to its breeding streams. *(Source: [San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance]())* ## Sources 1. [Goliath Frog. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.]() 2. [Conraua goliath. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T5263A96062132.]() 3. [Monthe Moumegni et al. (2021). The Feeding Regime of Goliath Frog (Conraua goliath) (Boulenger, 1906) in the Equato-guinean Zone of Cameroon. Genetics and Biodiversity Journal.]() 4. [Nguete Nguiffo et al. (2019). Microfilariae infestation of goliath frogs (Conraua goliath) from Cameroon. PLOS ONE.]() *Published October 11, 2026. 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Researchers who opened the stomachs of frogs from Cameroon found a mix of animal prey and leaves and stems, and concluded the species is an omnivore that eats what its surroundings offer.", "citation": { "@type": "ScholarlyArticle", "name": "The Feeding Regime of Goliath Frog (Conraua goliath) (Boulenger, 1906) in the Equato-guinean Zone of Cameroon", "url": "https://doi.org/10.46325/gabj.v5i1.177", "author": "Monthe Moumegni et al.", "datePublished": "2021", "isPartOf": { "@type": "Periodical", "name": "Genetics and Biodiversity Journal" }, "identifier": "doi:10.46325/gabj.v5i1.177" } } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Why is the goliath frog in trouble?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "People hunt it for meat even though that is now illegal, and farming, logging and settlements are eating its forest. 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