Anyone have dart frogs?

[Marconis]

Being out of the aquarium hobby made me itch for something to hold me over, and in the summer I got a dart frog! It's a D. auratus, female. It's awesome. I have to culture fruit flies for it, which believe it or not is actually kind of fun. Post up your pics if you've got any frogs, here's mine:

 

[BillD]

The way frogs are succumbing to the Kettrick fungus, captivity may be their only salvation.

 

[Deep Seven]

Very nice, congratz on your acquisition. Darts frogs are on my dream list. I want to create a lush mountainous jungle setting with a waterfall and small pool, and make the whole thing big enough to have a pair of frogs.

 

[FishEggs]

i hope to do a dart frog habitat in the future myself. one day.
looks like a very healthy frog. good job

 

[melosu58]

Moved to the Amphibian Care, Health & Keeping forum here at AA.

 

[Marconis]

Thanks guys!

 

[TequariumLerro]

Forgive my ignorance, but are dart frogs poison? I have watched nature programs and that look similar to those I have seen.

It looks like you have a nice habitat for her. Is she in a Terrarium?

 

[Marconis]

They are poison in the wild due to the ants they eat, I believe. So when bred in captivity they don't have a chance to take up toxins.

She's in a ten gallon

 

[Deep Seven]

Dart frogs secrete a substance that causes paralysis. They produce a lot more of this substance from eating ants, believed to be because of the formic acid the ants produce.

If you have an open cut or sore when handling a dart frog you may experience short term paralysis around the cut, like a paralyzed finger.

When used for hunting the hunter would rub his arrow along the back of the frog, then when he scores a hit on an animal that animal becomes partially paralyzed so the hunter can walk up and finish the kill.

 

[mandy2936]

That's such a nice looking frog! Can you post a pic of the overall setup? Your frog is really cool looking.
Anyways, about what Deep Seven said about the paralysis... that's scary! I would always wear gloves when putting my hand in the tank!

 

[Marconis]

I've touched my dart a few times because it hadn't moved from one spot in days, so I thought it was dead. Nothing ever happened to me.

I'll post a pic of it on Sunday since I'm not at my apartment until then.

Here's one more picture of her...this was taken two days after I got her; I thought it was funny with her being on the glass, and that is the only time I've ever seen it done!

 

[MarkA123]

now i want one lol. Are they expensive or expensive/hard to care for

 

[Marconis]

The auratus species is generally one of the cheaper ones. I got it for $65 at a store, but you can find them privately for much less. Some frogs can be up to $200, and proven pairs (if you want your frogs to mate) are more expensive.

Generally, they are not very hard to care for. The only annoying thing you need to do is culture your own fruit flies (if you don't it can get expensive) since an individual frog needs to be fed 20+ each day, and you can also feed them springtails and woodlice but I don't do that. The calcium/vitamin supplements are like $10 each and last six months. You can get really advanced and set up a misting system (since they need constant humidity) but I just spray a few times a day with a spray bottle to keep the humidity between 80 and 90%.

Some people go all out with their setups (like many of us do with fish tanks), but I kept it pretty simple. I just bought a philodendron and a pothos and watched them envelope the entire vivarium. I have another small vine plant but I don't remember what it's called. So really the cost for setup can be cheap to really expensive, like with anything.

Here's my tank, but the plants have grown in A LOT more and I removed the ugly plant on the left.

I'll get a new photo on Sunday.

 

[Deep Seven]

I've touched my dart a few times because it hadn't moved from one spot in days, so I thought it was dead. Nothing ever happened to me.

Yeah, handling captive dart frogs is not a problem unless you have a cut or open sore. If you have such an injury you'd be advised to wear gloves when handling dart frogs.

Nice set-up. Looking forward to seeing an updated pic

 

[Marconis]

Here's an updated photo. Nothing has changed really except that I removed the plant from the front left, and angled a floor plant out from the back so it could root along the open space where the other plant was. Pothos have grown lke crazy, philos in the back have made their way all the way to the back left.

This is the back left of the tank. See the philodendron? It was originally planted on the far right of the tank. It's incredible how far it'll root and grow. I love it.

This is just to give you an idea of density on the right side of the tank.

Nothing special, but my frog seems to love it. Sorry that she isn't in the pic; she gets scared when I come right up to it (unless I'm feeding).

 

[LemurLad]

She's beautiful! Tempted to get one after seeing your little set up, I was under the impression that they needed a good amount of room.

 

[Marconis]

She's beautiful! Tempted to get one after seeing your little set up, I was under the impression that they needed a good amount of room.

Thanks!

Well, having only one (especially an auratus) allows for ample space for her in a ten gallon. Two or more I think you generally need to go 20g or larger. Not 100% sure on that.

 

[LemurLad]

Ooh and I've got a spare tank that could fit a pair! Might join you in a few months.

 

[becrac16]

I've always wanted some! I would have done it with my 55 gal but I figured it would get too expensive.

 

[Jason7894561230]

Did you say you wanted to see frogs? I took a few photos of a yellow frog just like the ones you have