Chacoan Horned Frog

The back of C. cranwelli usually has dark green and brown coloration, although albino variants with orange and yellow coloration also exist and are popular in the pet trade. The dark color scheme aids in camouflaging the animal as it burrows and waits for its prey. Though generally inactive, it is an aggressive eater and is capable of leaping for several body lengths to capture prey. It uses its sticky tongue to latch onto prey and its heavy body to remain anchored while consuming prey.

Cranwell's horned frog is nocturnal and rests with its eyelids open. It is ordinarily carnivorous, feeding mostly on insects and like-sized animals such as rodents, and is known to cannibalize other frogs. Large individuals have bite forces comparable to those of mammalian predators. Although it is capable of eating animals almost half its size, Cranwell's horned frog sometimes eat things larger than itself. Its bite force is able to immobilize its prey, despite its being half the size of the prey. However, due to a row of teeth along the upper jaw, it is unable to release prey from its mouth, potentially causing it to die by choking.

The specific name, cranwelli, is in honor of Argentinian herpetologist Jorge A. Cranwell.