COURIER MAIL (Brisbane, Australia) 08 February 08 Green tree frogs cop kicking when mistaken for cane toads (Neil Hickey)
A Green tree frog mistaken for a cane toad and kicked by a group of teenagers is fighting for his life at a Gold Coast sanctuary.
The frog, dubbed Puffy, is in a critical condition at the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary after being hideously attacked by teenagers in Nerang two nights ago.
The frog was rescued by a neighbour on Wednesday night and taken to the sanctuary the following day where staff are administering expert care.
The frog, a naturally resilient creature, suffered ruptured lungs, severe internal bleeding and severe bruising although no fractures.
The terrorised animal has blown up to twice its normal size because of the attack, senior veterinarian Dr Michael Pyne said.
"Fingers crossed he's going to hang in there," he said.
"Frogs are pretty tough but its going to be very much touch and go for the next 24 hours.
"At this point we're just trying to reduce the air from escaping from his lings and keeping him comfortable."
He said staff would attempt as much as possible for the Puffy to heal himself, adding "if we went in all heroic and tried to operate on him we wouldnt be able to achieve much."
Dr Pyne said frogs and cane toads were often mistaken for one another but in this occasion he said there should have been no doubt about which one this was.
At four years, Puffy is fully grown.
Tree frogs are not an endangered species but Dr Pyne said their numbers here and overseas were under threat at an alarming rate for a variety of reasons, particluarly fungal infections.
"One of the messages we want to get through is obviously not to go kicking frogs around," he said.
"They're a very important part of the ecosystem, they keep mosquito and fly numbers down, so this is a bit of a lesson because sometimes it is easy to kill frogs thinking they're toads."
Green tree frogs cop kicking when mistaken for cane toads