By Baz Ruddick

ABC North Qld

Topic: Animals

On Wednesday, July 15, 2026, at 12:02 pm

Brigitte Szabo saw a white-lipped tree frog catch a sunbird. (Supplied: Brigitte Szabo)

In short:

Brigitte Szabo was watering her garden when she saw a white-lipped tree frog catch a sunbird in the air.

She took pictures of the frog eating the bird.

What's next?

Frog experts want people to take pictures of frogs and send them to a database.

Brigitte Szabo was watering her garden in Townsville when she saw something move.

A pair of sunbirds were flying around, and then a big green frog jumped out.

It was a surprising and violent scene between a predator and its prey.

Brigitte Szabo often sees frogs eat lizards, but she was surprised to see one catch a bird. (Supplied: Brigitte Szabo)

The frog grabbed the bird in the air and landed on a leaf to eat it.

I was amazed. I've seen frogs with geckos and lizards, but this was a real bird. The frog was a strong hunter.

'Garbage guts' of the wild

Jodi Rowley from the Australian Museum said most frogs don't eat birds.

But some big frogs, like the green tree frog, will eat almost anything that moves if it's close enough.

They are a little bit like garbage disposals.

They react to things that are close to them, so if they're hungry, they'll try to eat it.

Big frog species can be 'garbage guts' and try to eat large animals. (Supplied)

Sometimes a frog catches something big but can't swallow it and has to spit it out.

Frogs are cold-blooded, so it takes time to digest something big like a bird or snake.

They focus all their energy on digesting the meal.

While it's rare for a frog to eat a bird, Dr. Rowley has seen pictures of frogs eating snakes and big lizards.

The white-lipped tree frog is Australia's largest frog species and lives in North and Far North Queensland. (Supplied: Jodi Rowley)

I've even seen bats being eaten by frogs. It's not common, so it's cool to see.

I've spent my life studying frogs and have never seen one eat a bird or something that big.

The olive-backed sunbird is 10-12 cm long and builds complex nests from spider webs and plants. (ABC Open contributor MediaWatcher)

In Townsville, Keeliah O'Keefe saw a frog attack a bird on her porch.

When she saw Ms. Szabo's picture, she shared her own picture of a green tree frog with a finch in its mouth.

She heard a strange noise at her door and found a frog grabbing a small bird, probably a double-barred finch.

If you didn't see it or take a picture, nobody would believe you.

Keeliah O'Keefe saw this frog with a finch at her Townsville home. (Supplied: Keeliah O'Keefe)

Ms. O'Keefe felt bad for the bird and stopped the frog.

I flicked the frog, and it let the bird go.

Many frogs are in danger

Dr. Rowley wants people to help frogs in their gardens.

Frogs usually eat insects, which can be pests, and they compete with mosquitoes to keep them down.

Brigitte Szabo says the frog looked 'fat and content' 4 hours after eating the bird. (Supplied: Brigitte Szabo)

Homeowners should be careful with pesticides, keep cats inside, and make their gardens 'frog-friendly'.

Dr. Rowley says people can send pictures of frogs to apps like iNaturalist and record frog calls for the FrogID app.

It helps us understand how frogs are doing and how to protect them from extinction.

On Wednesday, July 15, 2026, at 12:02 pm

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