Frog in Love
Crapaud Amoureux (French)
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European tree frog / Alamy
During the breeding season, many amphibians, usually males, acquire a more vibrant coloration to attract potential mates. The females, of course, don't need such gimmicks to be beautiful. An intense, bright green color thus came to be known in French as crapaud amoureux, or ‘frogs in love’. We’re not talking about some dull, grayish-green shade here but the warmest, brightest hue. Unfortunately, like many colors in the bright green spectrum, the color of ‘a frog in love’ used to require the addition of arsenic, which sometimes had adverse effects on the health of its admirers.
Today, in the hexadecimal code used by designers, it is denoted by the value #3CAA3C.