# Poison Dart Frogs



## goods (Dec 6, 2011)

Here are a few picture of PDFs that I keep. Growing orchids in terrariums introduced me to these frogs and I'm hooked now. Hope you guys like the pictures.


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## Shiva (Dec 6, 2011)

Hey! I'm french. So I must like frogs. oke:


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## NYEric (Dec 6, 2011)

Are you french? 
Nice dendros!


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## Shiva (Dec 6, 2011)

Canadien français and we speak better french than the french.


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## SlipperFan (Dec 6, 2011)

I didn't know frogs were french...oke:

These are among the coolest of all frogs!


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## Shiva (Dec 6, 2011)

SlipperFan said:


> I didn't know frogs were french...oke:



rebbit, rebbit, rebbit!


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## Eric Muehlbauer (Dec 6, 2011)

Or rabbit, rabbit, rabbit! What tastes better, rabbit or frog's legs? Tough decision!


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## Shiva (Dec 6, 2011)

Goodsnight to all! And they are very nice frogs


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## Eric Muehlbauer (Dec 6, 2011)

How easy are they to keep? I always had long term problems trying to keep any frog other than Xenopus...I think it was redleg that would eventually get them.


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## Rick (Dec 6, 2011)

Cool I used to propagate Dendrobatids back when I worked at the OK city zoo in the 80's/90's.

I wrote an article on a mass production method of raising Dendro tadpoles for one of the earliest editions of Vivarium magazine.

Those teeny strawberry frogs are a challenge. The tadpoles are tiny and almost obligate egg eaters.


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## Lanmark (Dec 6, 2011)

Cool!


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## goods (Dec 6, 2011)

Thanks everyone!

Eric, I don't find them that hard to keep. Warm temps, high humidity in the tanks, regular misting, and provide them some cover. Some are easier than others. 

The blue ones are a locale of Dendrobates auratus. These are fairly large for dart frogs. These come from the El Cope region. I got my trio from the original importer of this line. I'd say the auratus are some of the easiest PDFs to keep.

The orange one was Ranitomeya lamasi, which has now been changed to R. sirensis. These are TINY. 

The red one is Oophaga pumilio from the Almirante population. As Rick said, these have been considered difficult to breed until fairly recently. Oophaga translates to egg eater, and this leads to much of the breeding difficulty. The female frog must feed the tadpoles unfertilized eggs. Many methods to raise them artificially have been unsuccessful. I find these the most interesting mostly because of their parental strategy. 

Overall, I think these are easy to keep as long as you can culture fruit flies successfully, and I find the frogs just as enjoyable and rewarding as my orchid collection.


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## Rick (Dec 6, 2011)

Keep your eyes open for tinctorius or azureus if they still go by these names. The all used to be species of Dendrobates, but it looks like the frog taxonomists are splitting them up into different genera.

The tinctorius are huge compared to auratus, and the breeders started coming up with specialty designer color strains like the Leopard gecko breeders.

Generally the tadpoles are canabalistic (auratus especially) but tinctorius wasn't too bad as long as they were all about the same size.

If you plan to breed I'll see if I can find that article.

Vivarium Vol2 No1 1989


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## goods (Dec 7, 2011)

I have a friend who had tincs and they were a bit too big for my liking. The most common species (auratus, leucomelas, and tinctorius along with truncatus) are all still Dendrobates. The thumbnail species have been moved to Ranitomeya, and the egg eaters are now in Oophaga. There are a few other genera but those are the most commonly seen. 

Most of mine are still too young to breed, but I do plan on breeding them at some point. I'd love to read your article if you still have it.


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## biothanasis (Dec 9, 2011)

I've always found these colourful creatures very beautiful!!


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## goods (Apr 20, 2012)

I just wanted to update this thread. I got another little guy a few months ago, and it's finally becoming more bold in its tank. This is Oophaga pumilio "Cristobal". It's the same species as the Almirante, just from a different island off the coast of Panama. 

I've also got a pair of Ranitomeya imitator "Green", but they're too quick for me to get a good shot of. I'll keep trying, though.


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## abax (Apr 21, 2012)

All of them are just beautiful. Do they sing occasionally?
We have a very small local frog that trills and the sound
is lovely and relaxing. My sil has a pond where they seem to show up around breeding time and I love listening to them.


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## niveum (Apr 21, 2012)

goods said:


> Here are a few picture of PDFs that I keep. Growing orchids in terrariums introduced me to these frogs and I'm hooked now. Hope you guys like the pictures.



which Morphe of O. pumilio are those?

I keep O. cf. typographa and R. benedicta.
Peter


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## goods (Apr 21, 2012)

The pumilio in the first set of pictures are Almirante/ Man Creek and the newest picture is of a San Cristobal.

Where are you located niveum? 

Those benedicta are stunning. I've seen them in person and would love to have some. The cost is just too high at the moment. The O. cf. typographica are what people call Blue Jean pumilio in the U.S., correct?

Thanks abax! Yes, my R. imitator and R. lamasi males call almost daily. These are all diurnal, so I get to enjoy the calling, and they don't interfere with sleep.


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## Paphman910 (Apr 21, 2012)

Wow! I use to have Poison Dart frogs as well! Must be having fun culturing the fruit flies! My favorite species is Epipedobates tricolor.

Paphman910


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## goods (Apr 21, 2012)

The fruit flies are really the only flaw to this hobby. It's not even that they bother me all that much. It's more because I'll have a great boom of flies and then a great looking culture just doesn't produce at all. That's when I'm thankful to have isopods and springtails as back up feeders.

I, too, like the tricolors, especially the highland locale. Unfortunately, these reside in a walk-in closet connected to my room, and those are very loud. I'll have to hold off on them until I get a space dedicated to the frogs and i can still sleep.


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