Dart Den
Serving the Dart Frog Community Since 2004...
Dart Den

Serving the Dart Frog Community Since 2004...

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Hoping for some quick advice
#1
Hi All. I'm hope to get a few quick answer to finish my new tank tomorrow. There's reptile show in town so I may have access to some things otherwise unavailable around here. I have a new tank ready to house new pets.

The tank is 30g cube with waterfall, moss for ground cover, a few bromiliades, some bamboo, etc. Power compacts for lights, under gravel filtration including biofilter. I have some ideas but need some feedback to finish.

My questions:

1. Is buying dart frogs from a reptile show recommended? More or less likely to result in disease / parasites?

2. I got a recommendation that I can keep 2 day geckos in the same tank with 3-4 dart frogs. Is this legit?

3. Will the sellers be able to sex the frogs on site or is this difficult?

4. I am thinking about either P. terribilis or D. azureus - are these or any other species/genus more active / more aquatic / more aggressive / more social than others? Any reason to pursue one of these or the other?

5. I'd like to add some carnivorous plants like pitchers and/or fly traps - any recommendations or reasons not to do this?

Any tips will be taken seriously and much appreciated.

Thanks,

Joel
Indianapolis
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#2
Welcome Joel.
Buying dart frogs at a reptile show is not a problem, as long as you know who you are buying from. It is important to buy from a breeder, and not some that is just selling the frogs. Be sure to get some contact info (business card, phone number etc), in case you have a question, or should a problem arise. They will be better able to help you since they know their frogs better than anyone else.
Some people at the reptile shows will order in an assortment of animals to have at the show just to sell, and really are not familiar with the specific care and needs of the dart frogs. Also, they will not know the age of the frogs, and even sometimes they don't know what morph of dart frog it is.

I would not recommend mixing phelsuma with the dart frogs. Some people have done it, I would recommend waiting until you have a little more experience, and a larger enclosure.

It is not likely that the seller will be selling sexable frogs. Most of the time they are selling froglets or juveniles.

Some frogs that would be good for a first time keeper are P. terribilis, P. vittatus, D. leucomelas, D. galactonotus, D. auratus, D. truncatus.
All of these are easy going frogs that will do well in a group, and can take larger food items if neccessary.

You mentioned that you have your tank ready, do you have food available for the frogs should you decide to get them?

There are a few carnivorous that would be suited for the vivarium. Not reason not to plant them if you like them.
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#3
hey joel,

flytraps will probably not work in the long run. first, each trap on a vft can only close once or twice before the leaf and trap will die. if frogs and or bugs keep triggering the traps, your plant probably can't grow new leafs quickly enough. they also need a dormancy period of at least 3-4 months. i throw them in the fridge from before thanksgiving to after valentines day. you could move a potted vft from the tank to the fridge each year.

american pitcher plants also need the cold dormancy, and most grow fairly tall, so might not fit in your tank.

asian pitchers are split into highland and lowland species. lowland plants are suited to the climate in our tanks. i think, but can't promise, that a nepenthes would not "eat" a larger frog. nepenthes are also vines which grow to 30 ft. and more. you can choose a smaller species, and keep it pruned back to some degree, but you still need a fairly big tank. still, they might work. i'm trying an ampullaria in a 55 i set up recently. i'm not sure if i'm brave enough to leave it in there, as i'm putting thumbnails in the tank.

another more expensive option, which i plan to try, is the cephalotus follicularis. they are very cool looking, grow warm and wet year around, and are not delicate plants. my only worry with them would be to be extra careful not to get excess calcium supplement into the soil matrix. cephalotus, like almost all carnivores, need soft acidic soil/water, so the rep-cal would not be good for it.
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#4
Thank you, Cindy and Mack!

I will make sure the sellers are the breeders. Most of the exhibitors at the show focus on snakes and/or monitor lizards but a few specialize in pdf's. I'll get more info from them before I buy.

Cindy, you did not mention D. azureus in your list of good starter frogs - any reason that these would not make a good choice? I was also reading about Cobalt "Tincs". I understand this choice would limit me to 2 animals and if they are indeed too young to sex, I would risk getting 2 of the same sex. Boy, are they cool looking though...hehe.

I did some additional searches about the day geckos (gold dust are the ones I was looking at) before and after I read your post and most of the info seems positive - even within this site's forum. I'll take your advice though and wait until the frogs are settled and I have more experience and/or a larger vivarium.

I don't have a food supply ready but I met one of the exhibitors that has a local store. They breed and sell pdfs, viv plants including orchids, fruit flies, supplements, etc. I can buy from them at my convenience or get a culture of my own going if and when this becomes a better option. I will discuss this further with them this morning when I go to the show.

I'll avoid vft's as you suggested, Mack. I read several of your posts on this topic after I posted this question - sorry for being impulsive and posting without reading more. I will check into the cephatolus follicularis. There is one exhibitor at the show with a pretty extensive plant display. I'll see if they have something like this. I read about the calcium concern too. I'll watch this carefully if I decide to try any of these.

Its too bad that I can't start with a sexable option. Is it normal practice to buy a few and just hope you get one of each? Is this only acceptable practice for species that do not become territorial at sexual maturity or that do well in groups? What is the best method to start a group that I can't sex?

Thanks again for your kind replies. I look forward to moving out of the newb section soon - hehe.

Joel
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#5
Joel,
azureus will be ok, as long as you understand that as they become sexually mature, they can become very territorial, and you will need to have a plan to separate if neccessary, they are best in male/ female pairs. Azurues are a very attractive and hardy frog. Same situation with tinctorius to a lesser degree.
As for starting with a sexable pair, it is possible that one of the breeders there will have some, just ask.

I'm glad Mack chimed in and gave you some recommendation on the carnivorous plants. We have used small forms of nepenthes, and pinguicula
in some of our vivariums. Do some research as to what is available and their requirements. Mike Howlett can give you some info as he has an extensive collection, and is working with some that are suited to vivarium conditions. He would be glad to help answer your questions. Here is a link to his site, and a small sample of what he has available.
http://www.houstonherp.com/CPPriceList.htm

Let us know if you get your frogs today.


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#6
most carnivourious plants are OK with dart frogs but i think theres one that could kill froglets.

if your looking to buy an active/easy to see dart frog D. leacomleas and D. imitator are bolth good ones
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