The frog

[R. Sale]

These examples appear to be from sources that are quite diverse. 

This whole frog and salamander thing, finding Rene's lizard with the pointed (not forked) tongue, has provided an interesting set of categories and terminology, if we use something like the Aberdeen Bestiary list of snakes and reptiles. Could be useful for further discussion if language and vocabulary are relevant
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Everything from Draco to Salamandra and more, you would think. But no pointy-tongued lizard and apparently no frogs or toads.

None of the illustrations above looks (IMO) like something that might have come from an article on frogs or toads in a bestiary. And if not, why not? Are they not represented?

[davidjackson]

I suggest that there is no point in looking for an explanation for a "frog" and a "salamander" which doesn't link into the surrounding plants.
Everything in the Voynich is likely to be linked. If the artist saw fit to draw a "frog" | "toad" and a "whatever", it's because they had something to do with the topic on the page.

[aStobbart]

There is a whole family of herbs called ranunculaceae named after ranunculus (little frog), which is derived from latin rana.  These herbs are often found near water or swamps, hence the name

[R. Sale]

Frogs in bestiaries.

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[-JKP-]

I didn't post the frogs I found in medieval herbals, because they are in my herbal files. Also, some have already been posted.

But it is interesting that frogs are found in many kinds of manuscripts.

[ReneZ]

Here is Morgan MS M 890 with a 'lacertus':

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[-JKP-]

Morgan M.890 is interesting because it mentions lizards (lacertus), salamanders, and frogs all in the same paragraph.

The drawing looks like snakes but it's probably salamanders. If they are in a tree "poisoning" fruit, even if they don't have legs, they often represent salamanders. Serpens (a word used for both snakes and dragons) comes later on the folio.

[Koen G]

The salamander top right on that page has a lot in common with our mystery critter. The fact that it has only two legs may explain why the VM critter appears to have only one leg on the right side.

[-JKP-]

   

[Scarecrow]

A scorpion?