The tadpole titan
affectionately known as "Goliath" is no more. The enormous polliwog
died in 2019, according to a tweet written on May 26,
2020 by herpetologist Earyn McGee, who introduced Twitter to Goliath in 2018.
Researchers initially mistook
Goliath for a fish when they discovered him in southeastern Arizona. The
tadpole was about twice as long as a soda can, yet never matured into a
bullfrog, likely due to "some sort of hormone imbalance," McGee said.
While Goliath's size made him a more competitive eater compared to his tadpole
kin (which tend to max out at about 6 inches in length), it also probably put
him at a health disadvantage.
"The drawbacks of
Goliath's size is that his respiratory and circulatory system may not continue
to support his body size as he continues to grow," McGee said.
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