Blue frog found in the northern mountains a sign of a happy future?

Blue frog found in the northern mountains a sign of a happy future?

An Okinawa tree frog with blue-colored skin due to a pigmentation disorder was found in the northern area of the main island on November 21. (Photograph provided by Akira Oyama.)


November 27, 2013 Ryukyu Shimpo

Could this blue frog be related to the blue bird of happiness? Akira Oyama, an eco-tour guide of the Ogimi Marugoto Tourism Association, found a blue Okinawan tree frog (Rhacophorus viridis) in the mountains of the northern area of the main island on November 21. According to experts, frogs with blue skin due to abnormal pigmentation are rare. Oyama found the four-centimeter long frog asleep on the grass. “I thought it was an insect or something for a moment, but when I looked closely I realized that it was a frog,” said Oyama.

This species of frog inhabits Okinawa’s main island. Normally, its skin is yellow-green in color. Takeshi Sasaki, a curator of University of the Ryukyus Museum, said, “Very few of these frogs exist because their color is caused by mutation.”

In Bali, Indonesia, blue frogs are also referred to as “the frog of happiness.” “As with the blue bird of happiness, this could mean that happiness will appear in a familiar place for you,” said Oyama with a smile.

(English translation by T&CT, Mark Ealey)

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