At first glance, the tawny frogmouth looks more like a grumpy piece of bark than a bird. Its staring yellow eyes and enormous, downturned froglike mouth give it an expression of permanent disapproval, while its mottled feathers allow it to disappear among tree branches.
No wonder this funny and endearing critter is deemed to be the most “Instagrammable” type of bird, according to German researchers, and even claimed the title of Australia’s Bird of the Year in 2025.
Is the tawny frogmouth an owl?
The tawny frogmouth is often mistaken for an owl, which is understandable: it is nocturnal, big-eyed and has a talent for looking solemn in trees. Taxonomically, however, it sits in the family Podargidae and is more closely related to nightjars and hummingbirds than to true owls.
The difference is most obvious in the feet. An owl has powerful talons for seizing prey, while the tawny frogmouth has short legs and relatively weak feet. Rather than gripping victims in a dramatic aerial snatch, it usually waits on a perch, drops down suddenly and uses its broad, hooked bill to deal with whatever unfortunate creature has wandered beneath it.
How big is the town frogmouth?
It is between 32.5–50cm tall with a wingspan of 65–98cm. It weighs between 200–600g
Are there other frogmouths?
The tawny frogmouth is the best-known member of the family, partly because it lives close to people across much of Australia and Tasmania, but it is only one representative of a much wider and wonderfully odd group. The family Podargidae includes species found from the Indian subcontinent and South-East Asia through to New Guinea, Australia and nearby islands.
Among its relatives are the Sri Lanka frogmouth, large frogmouth, marbled frogmouth, Papuan frogmouth and Solomons frogmouth. Despite a variation in range and habits, the family resemblance is strong: cryptic plumage, a broad gape and the look of a bird that has just been interrupted during a very important nap.
Where does the tawny frogmouth live?
The tawny frogmouth is found across mainland Australia and Tasmania. It is highly adaptable and uses a range of habitats, including woodland, forest, scrub, farmland, parks and suburban gardens. Dense rainforest and open country are less suitable, because the bird’s hunting strategy depends on having somewhere to perch, hide and spot prey on the ground, before swooping down to attack.
How does it avoid being eaten?
The tawny frogmouth’s greatest defence is its commitment to the role of tree branch. By day, it perches upright on a branch, stretches its body, closes its eyes to narrow slits and points its bill skywards. Its grey-brown, streaked plumage blends so well with bark that even such a large bird can disappear in plain sight. This behaviour is sometimes called stumping. It may be amusing to human eyes, but it is deadly serious for the frogmouth, which may be taken by foxes, cats, dogs and birds of prey.
What does it eat?
Despite that enormous mouth, its diet is mostly made up of small fare: nocturnal insects, along with spiders, worms, slugs, snails, centipedes and cockroaches. It will also take small mammals, reptiles, frogs and birds when the opportunity arises.
How does the tawny frogmouth breed?
The tawny frogmouth usually forms a long-term pair and breeds between about August and December. The nest is a fairly flimsy platform of sticks, often built in the fork of a tree branch and sometimes lined or camouflaged with leaves, lichen, moss, feathers or spider webs.
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The female typically lays two to three eggs. Both adults share incubation and nest defence duties, with the eggs hatching after about 30 days. The chick remains in the nest while both parents bring food, and usually fledges after roughly 25–35 days. It may stay near its parents for some time afterwards.
Does it sing?
The tawny frogmouth is not a famous songster, but it is not silent. Its typical call is a low, repeated “oom-oom-oom”, that has a strange mechanical quality. It may also hiss or make a buzzing sound when threatened.
How does it cope with cold weather?
Rather than entering a long winter hibernation, during cold nights or early mornings the tawny frogmouth may use short bouts of torpor to reduce the energy cost of keeping warm. One study of wild birds found that during the coldest months, its body temperature could drop to about 29°C, well below its normal active temperature.
Is the tawny frogmouth threatened?
The tawny frogmouth is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN and remains generally common across its large range. That does not mean life is risk-free. Road collisions are a serious problem, particularly when the bird hunts insects attracted to headlights. Secondary poisoning by consuming prey that is contaminated with pesticides is also a major concern – to the extent that a specific pesticide used to kill termites was banned in Australia in the late 1990s. Introduced predators such as cats and foxes may take adults, chicks or eggs.
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