A Field Study of the Kansas Ant-Eating Frog, Gastrophryne olivacea

In the grasslands of northeastern Douglas County, Kansas, a tiny vertebrate dominates the insect world: the ant‑eating frog, Gastrophryne olivacea. Though barely a few centimeters long, its sheer numbers make its biomass rival that of larger amphibians, yet its secretive, underground lifestyle keeps it largely out of sight. This field guide explores how such a modest creature shapes the ecology of the University of Kansas Natural History Reservation.

Drawing on six consecutive years of meticulous fieldwork, the author recorded more than a thousand frogs, each individually marked to track movements, breeding patterns, and diet. The data build on earlier summer studies and offer a detailed picture of the frog’s seasonal rhythms, its relationship to ant populations, and how it compares with its southern cousin, the eastern ant‑eating frog. Listeners will come away with a vivid sense of how a small, hidden species can wield outsized influence in its habitat.