Common Name: Poison Dart Frogs
Origin: Central and South America
Life Expectancy: A well cared for dart frog can live 7-10 years. However, there are dart frogs I have cared for with records of 12 years.
Sexual Determination: Each species varies a little bit, but the majority of dart frogs follow the normal amphibian rules of sexual dimorphism. Females are generally larger when full size. Also, seeing a male call is a good indicator of sex, but who has time to wait for a frog to call at a noisy reptile show? Sometimes frogs don’t call when you need them to.
A trick I like to use is to look at the back of a dart frog. Roughly halfway between the head and cloaca of a dart frog there is a back arch formed by the urostyle and lower vertebra meeting. Females will have a steeper, more pronounced arch in this region, while males have a flatter back. This characteristic is especially visible in D. tinctorius and D. azureus, but this subtle characteristic can help sex other species as well.
Dart frogs can also be sexed by comparing toe pads. Many amphibians are sexed by nuptial pads on males, but dart frog males will also generally have larger, more circular toe pads.
Captive Temperature Range: 75-80º F will be quite sufficient for most dart frogs. Many keepers leave their frogs at room temperature and allow lighting to provide their only source of heat. Strawberry dart frogs are the only species I would keep closer to 80º F. Most breeders seem to agree they require warmer conditions.
An appropriately sized heating pad will be sufficient in providing heat for your dart frogs. Place your pad on the underside of your aquarium on a specific side to allow a heat gradient.
Recommended Humidity: 80%. Covering half your tank with a piece of glass will help retain moisture. You shouldn’t have to mist more than twice a day with the set up I will propose below. Many keepers will cover an entire tank with glass to ensure plenty of humidity. I try to avoid this because stagnant conditions are a breeding ground for molds and fungus that can otherwise threaten your amphibian’s welfare.
Covering your tank with glass or plexyglass also restricts UVB into your set up. I will explain later why I encourage UVB in your tank. Most of us are not rich enough to have a UVB meter on hand, so the everyman won’t be able to see their system’s output. I have tested high UVB output lights and scanned UVB levels through many materials. The general consensus is that most thin clear materials like glass and plexyglass will allow a small percentage of UVB through, but that small amount of UVB is similar to a cheap fluorescent light. There is no point spending a lot of money if you are covering your tank completely.
Feeding: Dart frogs are specialized to eat small sized food items. Adult dart frogs prefer pin head or 1/8” crickets and fruit flies over larger prey items. Feed 20-30 per animal to encourage all day foraging and help keep your frogs exercised and strong. For juveniles and breeding pairs, I feed every day. Dust your food items twice a week with calcium and multivitamin the rest of the week. Heavy supplementation really increases growth and egg quality of breeding pairs. Non-breeding adults can eat every other day, dust with calcium once a week and multivitamin once a week. Refer to amphibian nutrition for other questions about what to feed your amphibians.
Lighting: The vast majority of care-sheets found on the web will tell you not to purchase UVB for dart frogs. Although you can keep dart frogs alive and quite happy without it, UVB is essentially to keeping a healthy well planted ecosystem for your frogs. Happy plants make happy frogs, especially with frogs that are so reliant on plants like bromeliads to reproduce.
If you are also planning to breed, UVB will save you a lot of worry. Many people who attempt to breed their dart frogs are left with countless weak clutches that mold and die within a week. Although some of these failed clutches may be attributed to poor male parenting, the majority of egg quality issues are due to unhealthy parents and weak eggs. Once your breeders are pumped full of vitamins and UVB (and thusly calcium), egg quality will sky-rocket and you will be overloaded with tadpoles.
Housing Requirements: A 20 gallon long is a very good start for a pair of dart frogs. If you want to have an easily serviceable set up, Zoo-Med and Exo-terra make swinging door enclosures that look nice and are very ergonomic. Floor space is needed for dart frogs. Dart frogs like to walk around and patrol territories. A trick to increasing floor space is adding tilted drift wood, cork bark and plants to give more area for your frogs to walk around and forage. Generally you are able to get away with using smaller tanks, as long as you provide hiding places for your frogs to escape from each other.
The best method for keeping dart frogs and many terrestrial amphibians is using false bottom setups with a drain. I always drill the bottom of my tanks. Stagnant water kills plants and frogs, so it is important that there is proper drainage for excess water to leave your system. To set up a proper tank, find a cheap glass drill bit and bulk head. Drill the bottom of your tank and fit your bulkhead and plastic strainer into your bulkhead to prevent drain clogs. Fill the entire bottom of your terrarium with hydroponic clay fired balls up to the top of your strainer. Trim window screening to the size of your tank and place it ontop of the hydroponic balls. This is necessary to prevent soil washing away. Place organic potting soils or planting material on top of the screen, then top that layer with long fiber moss or amphibian safe substrate. I highly recommend checking out the link below. The only thing Josh’s Frogs leaves out is drilling your tank, if you are cleaning your animals regularly, you need extra drainage, and a bulkhead allows that.
http://www.youtube.com/user/joshsfrogsvideos#p/u/8/uEtn3di1Cz0
Josh’s Frogs is a great resource and distributor of dart frogs and dart frog related products. They are at all the major shows and I know several people who work there. These people know their dart frogs and are at the forefront of dart frog care, check them out!
Breeding should be taken into consideration when constructing your tank. The most popular dart frogs will breed in coconut shell huts with Petri dishes, others will breed in old black film canisters, and each species has its preference. You should also decide if you will allow your frogs to take care of their offspring or if you will rear them by hand. If you let your frogs take care of them, a specific water feature may be required in your tank. Some dart frogs will carry their offspring to larger bodies of water and some will carry their tadpoles to a single bromeliad. There is as much variation in rearing techniques as there is color in the dart frog community. Do your research!
Special Considerations: Because dart frogs breed so easily, tadpole rearing is as much of the hobby as taking care of the adult frogs. Use tadpole tea. Whatever method you use to rear your frogs, tadpole tea is highly recommended at increasing efficiency in reproduction of your frogs. Many people use Indian almond leaves steeped in water; others use 7 mL of black water extract per gallon of water to make tadpole tea. The ladder is easier to make, but if you want to be as natural as possible, Indian almond leaves will work. In both methods, you are infusing water with tannins from plant matter. Tannins decrease pH slightly and prevent microbial loads from killing your sensitive tadpoles. Tadpole tea can also be used to flush over freshly fertilized dart frog eggs to keep them clean of microbes and hydrate them. Generally, males tend to eggs and urinate on them to keep eggs hydrated and free of microbes, but tadpole tea mimics this process.
There are many websites out there on how to take care and breed dart frogs. You should do your research, because again, every dart frog breeds a little differently. Below is a list of sources I recommend everyone look at before obtaining your frogs so you are aware of each species’ special requirements.
http://www.youtube.com/user/joshsfrogsvideos#p/u/8/uEtn3di1Cz0
This series of 16 movies by Black Jungle is a must watch. If you want to care for your tadpoles, this is how you do it. There are several movies that describe each stage in development, but it is well worth the time and effort. Some of the labeling and record keeping they talk about may not seem important, but in large institutions with several hundred tadpoles, record keeping is essential.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOdSY3JsaCM&p=AE5311E51AA4C62B&index=1&feature=BF
Josh’s Frogs again shows how they raise their tadpoles. This is a competing, but equally successful method of rearing tadpoles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FsiTFKBhk
Reptile Channel and Reptile magazine has done several articles on dart frogs. The August 2010 has a great article on care and breeding of thumbnail dart frogs as well.
http://www.reptilechannel.com/care-sheets/poison-dart-frog.aspx
Monday, October 25, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
White's Tree Frog Care Sheet
Species: Litoria caerulea
Common Name: Australian Green Tree Frog, White’s Dumpy Tree Frog
Origin: Australia and New Guinea
Life Expectancy: ~ 16 years.
Sexual Determination: Adult females will have a slightly larger snout/vent length. Males will develop nuptial pads on the inside of their “thumbs” at breeding age. Competing males can not resist to calling when another male begins chorusing.
Sexing can also be achieved by playing the calls on an MP3 player on a loop and monitoring to see who calls in response. For the tech savvy, try editing out the man’s voice in this mp3 and repeat this call on speakers.
White's Tree Frog Call
Captive Temperature Range: I keep these in the mid to higher 70ºF range. A 50w basking spotlight can help with gradient and push temps into the mid 80ºF range. A combination of an under tank heater and a basking spot will be plenty. White’s Tree Frogs are one of the most popular amphibians on the market for good reason, they are easy to please.
Recommended Humidity: Generally your house will have enough humidity for a White’s Tree Frog tank. Unless you live in an exceptionally dry area, the extra heat required to heat your tank will warm your water dish/water source enough to increase humidity. 50% humidity is a great target for humidity. If humidity is too low, you can cover part of your tank with plexiglass or polycarbonate. Be very careful to not restrict airflow.
Feeding: 2-3 adult crickets three times a week per frog for juveniles and 4-6 adult crickets two times a week per frog for adults. Calcium dust with D3 on one feeding, high quality multivitamin for the second feeding. Add variety, pinkies are an option for large frogs like White’s, but not a staple. Please check out amphibisource’s amphibian nutrition guide for extra help with feeding your pets.
Lighting: The main light source in your tank can be compact fluorescent or fluorescent strips, whatever is easiest and most cost efficient for you. I recommend with any amphibian to include at least some UVB either in a spot or fluorescent strip. 25-50w basking light depending on the size of your tank is needed to aid in digestion and temperature regulation.
Housing Requirements: Glass or acrylic aquariums that are tall or a normal aquarium stood on end to mimic an arboreal set up. Start with a tank that is 20 gallons for one frog and add 10 gallons for every additional frog. Tight fitting lids are essential. White’s cant squeeze through small cracks, but they will push on loose fitting lids and escape.
Some keepers use a wide range of substrates like coco-husk, coco-fiber, orchid bark, chips etc. I highly recommend long fiber sphagnum with White’s Tree frogs. These frogs will sky-dive, mouth open, onto a cricket and swallow more substrate than cricket. White’s have enough dexterity to pull out the long fiber moss if they do get a mouth full, and if the substrate is fully ingested it will likely not impact the frog. However, well planted vivariums can utilize a wide range of substrates and still avoid impaction. Surf the web for many cool websites on building a vivarium!
The tank can be a half water/land set up or fully terrestrial terrarium with a water bowl sunken in the substrate. Whichever method you choose, make sure the water is deep enough to fully cover and rehydrate the frog, but not deep enough for them to get stuck. Water changes are more than likely required 2-4 times a week depending on how dirty your animals are and how much you feed. Please visit the water quality page to see what water is safe to use for your amphibian. With any amphibian tank, I encourage everyone to drill holes and put bulkheads in the bottom of every tank. Non-tempered glass is drillable, tempered is NOT. A bulk-head aids drainage and helps flush out any stagnant mess left by your frogs that you’re unable to remove by hand.
Provide several perching sites for your White’s. A wide range of perching sites of varying range to your basking light will help your frog find the perfect temperature to bask. Drift wood and large plants can help with perching sites. Avoid grape wood because it will mold quickly and be unsafe for your frogs. Also, do not use sticks and branches from outside. Studies show chytrid fungus has reached northern parts of Canada; your backyard likely has it! Make sure you do your research on amphibian safe plants before placing them in your tank as well.
Special Considerations:
Varying light cycles may be a good idea when it comes to cycling your frogs. Because Australia is not directly on the equator, it does not have twelve hour nights and twelve hour days. Animals do pick up on these signs! Consider decreasing day lengths to 10-11 hours in colder months and increasing to 13-14 hours during warmer months to help with cycling. The best breeders will aestivate for several weeks by dropping temps and weaning their frogs off food. By warming up, and feeding heavily, the frogs will feel like it is spring and will wait for a large rain to breed. Rain champers or misting systems will induce amplexus. There are a lot of great references on the web about breeding White’s Tree Frogs, check them out!
Common Name: Australian Green Tree Frog, White’s Dumpy Tree Frog
Origin: Australia and New Guinea
Life Expectancy: ~ 16 years.
Sexual Determination: Adult females will have a slightly larger snout/vent length. Males will develop nuptial pads on the inside of their “thumbs” at breeding age. Competing males can not resist to calling when another male begins chorusing.
Sexing can also be achieved by playing the calls on an MP3 player on a loop and monitoring to see who calls in response. For the tech savvy, try editing out the man’s voice in this mp3 and repeat this call on speakers.
White's Tree Frog Call
Captive Temperature Range: I keep these in the mid to higher 70ºF range. A 50w basking spotlight can help with gradient and push temps into the mid 80ºF range. A combination of an under tank heater and a basking spot will be plenty. White’s Tree Frogs are one of the most popular amphibians on the market for good reason, they are easy to please.
Recommended Humidity: Generally your house will have enough humidity for a White’s Tree Frog tank. Unless you live in an exceptionally dry area, the extra heat required to heat your tank will warm your water dish/water source enough to increase humidity. 50% humidity is a great target for humidity. If humidity is too low, you can cover part of your tank with plexiglass or polycarbonate. Be very careful to not restrict airflow.
Feeding: 2-3 adult crickets three times a week per frog for juveniles and 4-6 adult crickets two times a week per frog for adults. Calcium dust with D3 on one feeding, high quality multivitamin for the second feeding. Add variety, pinkies are an option for large frogs like White’s, but not a staple. Please check out amphibisource’s amphibian nutrition guide for extra help with feeding your pets.
Lighting: The main light source in your tank can be compact fluorescent or fluorescent strips, whatever is easiest and most cost efficient for you. I recommend with any amphibian to include at least some UVB either in a spot or fluorescent strip. 25-50w basking light depending on the size of your tank is needed to aid in digestion and temperature regulation.
Housing Requirements: Glass or acrylic aquariums that are tall or a normal aquarium stood on end to mimic an arboreal set up. Start with a tank that is 20 gallons for one frog and add 10 gallons for every additional frog. Tight fitting lids are essential. White’s cant squeeze through small cracks, but they will push on loose fitting lids and escape.
Some keepers use a wide range of substrates like coco-husk, coco-fiber, orchid bark, chips etc. I highly recommend long fiber sphagnum with White’s Tree frogs. These frogs will sky-dive, mouth open, onto a cricket and swallow more substrate than cricket. White’s have enough dexterity to pull out the long fiber moss if they do get a mouth full, and if the substrate is fully ingested it will likely not impact the frog. However, well planted vivariums can utilize a wide range of substrates and still avoid impaction. Surf the web for many cool websites on building a vivarium!
The tank can be a half water/land set up or fully terrestrial terrarium with a water bowl sunken in the substrate. Whichever method you choose, make sure the water is deep enough to fully cover and rehydrate the frog, but not deep enough for them to get stuck. Water changes are more than likely required 2-4 times a week depending on how dirty your animals are and how much you feed. Please visit the water quality page to see what water is safe to use for your amphibian. With any amphibian tank, I encourage everyone to drill holes and put bulkheads in the bottom of every tank. Non-tempered glass is drillable, tempered is NOT. A bulk-head aids drainage and helps flush out any stagnant mess left by your frogs that you’re unable to remove by hand.
Provide several perching sites for your White’s. A wide range of perching sites of varying range to your basking light will help your frog find the perfect temperature to bask. Drift wood and large plants can help with perching sites. Avoid grape wood because it will mold quickly and be unsafe for your frogs. Also, do not use sticks and branches from outside. Studies show chytrid fungus has reached northern parts of Canada; your backyard likely has it! Make sure you do your research on amphibian safe plants before placing them in your tank as well.
Special Considerations:
Varying light cycles may be a good idea when it comes to cycling your frogs. Because Australia is not directly on the equator, it does not have twelve hour nights and twelve hour days. Animals do pick up on these signs! Consider decreasing day lengths to 10-11 hours in colder months and increasing to 13-14 hours during warmer months to help with cycling. The best breeders will aestivate for several weeks by dropping temps and weaning their frogs off food. By warming up, and feeding heavily, the frogs will feel like it is spring and will wait for a large rain to breed. Rain champers or misting systems will induce amplexus. There are a lot of great references on the web about breeding White’s Tree Frogs, check them out!
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