The genus name Podargus means ‘gouty’, derived from the Greek word podagra = gout. This refers to the small, presumably weak feet of the frogmouth. Some say they walk ‘like a gouty old man’.
The species name strigoides is from the Latin strix meaning ‘owl,’ and –oides, meaning ‘in the shape of’.
Thus the scientific name means: ‘gouty owl-like’ (bird). Frogmouths do resemble owls, but they belong to a different order (Caprimulgiformes), and are more closely related to nightjars.
The name frogmouth refers to the shape of the beak—as you can see, they have a very wide mouth with a huge gape, like a frog!
The tawny frogmouth is sometimes called ‘mopoke’.
Two other species of frogmouth occur in Australia- the marbled frogmouth, restricted to rainforests, and the Papuan frogmouth of Cape York Peninsula.