Stu & Shaz's Dart Frog Room

[Stu&Shaz]

A quick snap'cause these are always cool and a question how does a mum oophaga plan that she can lay new eggs,to be carried on the exact day her last lot hatch,two fold wonders,not just the timing be if there is a difference between trophic eggs and hatching eggs,then she can control,beyond the time aspect,wonderful isn't it

Big red,a redfrogbeach female avec tiny kid



Stu

[Philsuma]

Lovely !

[Stu&Shaz]

Lovely !

I wish I could have got the two tiny faces in above her head Phil, but in the jungle that is there viv,it just wasn 't happening

Hey ho hope you're good mate, too long no speak!!! Phil in three weeks we have kept frogs 3 years,can you believe that seems like yesterday !!!!

Stu

[Stu&Shaz]

Diane if you see this here's bonnie with one of her boys,the pic is lying about size a bit. We have now had a few clutches of eggs all infertile or mold,but they are now fertile,man these boys call quiet,I can see them call, but not hear at all,whereas I can other tincs,so it's not totally my ears at fault .

Bonnie courting:


best

Stu

[joneill809]

Beautiful Stu! Our male calls real quiet as well...the sounds-like-I-left-my-mobile-on-silent-in-my-jacket-on-the-other-side-of-the-room call...

[DianeCarter]

Beautiful pic, Stu! I only hear my male call very occasionally, because he is SOOO quiet!
Your Bonnie looks positively slim compared to my Azzie girls
Your pic shows the color variations very well, see how the legs look purple compared to the body? Lovely!

[Stu&Shaz]

Jim Diane,thank you both,not only for the kind words,but also for the remarks about calling,I learnt something from you both as it seems azeureus do call very quiet as a rule,I didn't know of this,just writing out what we observe as always. Funny isn't it we have some quite rare frogs here,but I'm getting so much joy from these guys:it's taken me so long to fulfill Shaz's needs,on colour(although I just see beautiful bog standard azzies :lol: ) plus the different genes,as best one can do that here,for us to breed from,for me.

Diane, she is losing weight,now she is breeding even moreso, she's now not far off where I want here,but it's been no easy task as we have already mentioned. I'm utterly thrilled as the boys looked thin when they came, here,but they look fabulous now aswell I hammered them with grub while in qt,but they didn't care much for those months in a tub. Now in viv,which is a goodly size 60cm sq (about 2' sq) base,only 40cm high they really seem to be thriving . Which is great as feeding up the two boys and pulling her back at the same time would have been tricky. I'd lay a bet her reaction to the boys,the constant running from one to the other/courtship /egg laying have been a huge asset to us here, as she has here mind on other things and the two lads are getting more time feeding,I'm so glad we got two boys not just one.It's really fortuetous things have worked out like they have

Let's hope this all continues to go well,so far so good,4 little tads just getting to the stage where one see's them start to move look good too,

thank you both

Stu

[Stu&Shaz]

So on feb 25th we celebrated 3 years of actually keeping darts, here's a bit of a round up of where we are at now.

Lets start with the all important food,maybe I'm ocd on this,but I sleep well.

26 3L iso cultures,they seem to do really well up there on top of the rack



Into my son's ex bedroom,now the bug room

more iso



More iso,springtails and some growouts getting ready for use





More springtails,all the floorspace under the racks is also taken up with springtails,actually in the frog room



The 12 viv rack



Red frog beach prove out viv



Summersi viv



I'm hoping that this will hold more summersi one day,our pr don't lay eggs with embryos in,I won't part with them ,but really want to breed this species,



Attachibakka



Grow out,I might come back to this

[Stu&Shaz]

Over to the other rack


Leucs


Mysties



Panama Special auratus


Azuereus

[joneill809]

Incredibly lush vivs Stu! The red frog beach "roller coaster of canisters" looks cool. That leuc viv caught my eye though with that impressive back wall. I really like the depth and movement your viv designs have. Thanks for all the pics and happy three year anniversary !

[Stu&Shaz]

Incredibly lush vivs Stu! The red frog beach "roller coaster of canisters" looks cool. That leuc viv caught my eye though with that impressive back wall. I really like the depth and movement your viv designs have. Thanks for all the pics and happy three year anniversary !

The roller coaster was a bit improvised Jim,i'll hold my hands up. I've had that little viv sat growing in for longer than we have had frogs and it's only just been inhabited for the first time,talk about slow :oops: It was litterally one of the first two vivs we built out So put it into use to try and sex out some kids. The iso population in there was enormous at one stage ,I had to feed it daily , it got rediculous. So I used to grab handfuls of subs complete with a zillion iso and start a new culture,did that every couple of weeks for ages. A complete stroke of luck and my rewards for being patient :lol:

Jim my friend you have sharp eyes,our vivs are quite deep,I've had some friends over recently talking frogs and all of them separately remarked on the viv depth,the Leucs is 2' deep. But this for most anyway Jim isn't apparent from my pictures. Jim I bang on about depth,I think it's an underutilized resourse. If one takes a viv 18" deep and extends it backwards to 2' one gives the frogs an extra 1/4 more space,which is a big deal to a tiny thing,but we only loose 6" of our room and barely notice what we lost,good init :lol:

Oh buddy thank you so much for the kinds words and the reply. Bonnie blue is still doing what she does,but so far the tads haven't made it ,I think she is just young and am not unduly worried in any way,with that I best go grab her eggs quick,I think I have 4 tiny clutches on the go now from them

take care

Stu

[Philsuma]

Stu...you and Glenn have two of the best looking frog rooms. Very nice !

All tanks are 'show tanks'.

[pa.walt]

stu I don't like you can't come and see your tanks in person.
hey phil too bad we can't have stu say "I'm having a m.a.d.s meeting at my house."
walt

[Stu&Shaz]

Stu...you and Glenn have two of the best looking frog rooms. Very nice !

All tanks are 'show tanks'.

He he, all ideas are someone's other than mine I just steal stuff,especially from Glenn :oops:

Buddy I'll take that,that's a lovely thing ,he's totally in a different league by the way 8) .So i'm 'aving that one much in the words we are both so damn slow!!

Phil serious head on,one does something like this and gets absorbed in it,almost can't see the wood for the trees,It's a hell of a job to walk past that room now Phil even when rushing. So much is going on in there. one simply gets sucked in dear boy and an hours slips by!!

Feelings are mutual Walt :lol: Well I guess at some stage you'll come back here you can see them then!!

MADS Miami antique dinasaur show??

Thanks both

Stu

[Stu&Shaz]

For nearly two years now,hmm possibly more we have kept a pr of R.Summersi,we adore them and will never part with them,but it seems our lass lays eggs with no embryos. Over the time we have kept we have almost learnt to cajole them into breeding mode,I thin k they are fairly sporadic breeders any way,maybe because where they live is fairly arid? So for quite a long time now I have wanted more,to keep trying with this species. But this isn't straight forward here,almost all our stock comes through Europe and you guys probably have some idea of the malarky that goes on here. So I've wanted some genuine UE summersi like my pr. No easy task in blighty if you haven't got access to pop over to europe as we have not,at this time. Because of the kindness of Ben(phelsumaman) and one of our shops,who knows all about our story(Richie at Rainforestvivs.co.uk) finally we have some more genuine UE summersi to have a crack at. To see the kindness that Ben and Richie showed to us is lovely ,to finally have the little frogs bred by Mark and Elaine is thrilling,they are all i'd expect and now banged up in QT but all is well so far.

These are some quick snaps,so far not too shy and I'm sure our usual persistance in talking to them and getting them used to us will eventually pay off with some visible frogs,just like our other little robots.







One day we might just see what we have wanted for so long, a tiny summersi walk out of the water,but for now,just that joy one gets from trying hard not succeeding,waiting and waiting and then finally getting another chance

Ahh tis a lovely thing

Thankyou to the friends mentioned,without you we wouldn't be showing this and running the stairs to see 'em,it's hellish difficult getting that childlike pure joy out of us,maybe we are sad,maybe we are just nuts,but if they breed,you'll hear us shouting over there ,I promise

bring it the hell on

Stu

[Stu&Shaz]

Ya'll sitting comfy like,off we go then back to dec 2012,a hellish road trip some great times with fellow froggers and some new kids to care for,long awaited and scared as hell the journey starts:

Frogs CB by the Dendroworks team,old line no worries of non legit,homework done this time!! We grabbed 3 here are two just as they entered the viv still kids

this is Drake


and JT


Within two days of getting them to viv,the third frog,had a massive fit and Died,guys this is hard brought out all the I'm not good enough stuff should have waited longer stuff and I'd already walked away twice,hard times lads,this was within days of loosing my dad,much dispair here,But ya get ya head down yeah,and keep trying even though it feels like the world just dropped on ya bloody head.The guys at Dendroworks,just smiled head up mate,we'll sort that later,they did,froggers huh. thanks guys

I ain't going to dwell on the negatives though,the viv didn't have issues just life huh,wacking the curve balls at ya.
We forward to june/july,wow Drake is a boy cool and JT hell it's written on her side,can't be...but she is a lass,We have full blown coutship.

Back we go to a viv,built yonks before by a totally no nothing dreamer,and all of those pondered designs pan out,the rocks where RH live,totally fluked,the laying sites built in,work??? Pop a big brom up front dude,she'll bung tads in there and she does right under my nose+ Two happy froggers bewildered by their good fortune.

laying sites right...and they use them


Of course,nowt is straight forward,they make a complete hash of the first clutch,Stu is putting the eggs back after they scramble them and drag out of the can,not once but twice :roll:

But to much disbelief a tiny thing hatches,on my one day off. I keep checking will she carry,I leave the room for 1/2 hour come back tad gone,not on JT search floor,ahh well,we'll have another go later

Development starting


and tad just hatched


A while later I spot movement,yup right up front,it really can't be but is,she did carry she is feeding,we are breeding redhead histrionica...words fail.

JT(it really is written on her side) here she is all grown up being a clever mum lays two clutches ,she can time this perfectly,to withing a day repeatedly of when her tads morph. Is worrying me,she bangs out all these eggs.


Look guys I'm like you, who knows what a histo feeds a kid,well we do and it's amazing



So I have very early concerns,but let things go along,the first kid morphs good legs an all,course JT steps in and knocks the little guy off the bromas I watch helpless,but despite my fears some how he's ok



We pull all the kids no real problems so far.





Had a tad growing well at the front,so a story of just how much we could miss when we simply can't see what's going on,like my pums.

I noted the bromleaf starting to die,ahh it will be alright ol' tad will be out of there in no time....wrong a few days later while doing the rounds topping up,down it wasn't dumping tad on the floor,I scooped him up placed in can reattched to brom and waited,JT ignored him,so we stepped in and hand fed. Ya know I've done all the ethical debates,I know where I stand.I'm cool with what will follow. I'm not hiding anything,just wanted to get me head down and learn,plus naturally try and help the real new guys here ,in blighty. that little tad we raised to my complete disbelief.during that process we learnt things I've not seen anywhere else,but i'm getting ahead of my self.

here's bromleaf just about ready to morph




and here she is not so long ago I live those gloves and damn she's pretty

[Stu&Shaz]

Thing continue,JT still banging out the eggs,maybe we pull some and surrogate,that will give her less to do,so I can see events panning out. We have to keep a couple alive for a couple of weeks,then we'll swap with basti kids about to morph,just two and see what happens. Of note is this tiny srublet of a ted,who is hell bent on life,he's taring at the food I give him and get's away to a flier,the second kid is slower and weeker. when they time comes the weak one goes to a new mum first,she feeds,then the strong guy a week or so later, already smaller than being fed by an obligate.

Again complete disbelief,they both morph out but the strong guy is too thin,I learn more and he comes out of the water, here he is he's called Moon and he is one strong little guy,right from the off one could see it. He never saw his mum,I still have the other too,but Moon is special,I remeber clearly saying to Shaz,he has to feed tomorrow,of it's finished



but feed he did



A few day ago little moon whom has grown faster than any other frog,outgrown all older siblings was our first kid to call,simply amazing at days after hatch one could see special little guy written all over him,I always thought it would be she growth and size an all

Moon recently



I guess this pretty much set us for the last stage .

when JT laid her last clutch of eggs I pulled a whole clutch ,she would only have few to feed now and the minute they morphed I would stop her,even if it meant throwing histo eggs away. Well that is exactly what happened,kids morphed,food cut misting cut,small clutch laid,binned 'em,a week later Drake's nearly stopped calling but another small clutch laid,and binned,they stop,rest a while,bloody fab.



Hmm but that other clutch well we dug in,hatched them,no chance really of more ,but on learns from such endevors. We lost all but 3 almost immediately ,following Rob Melencoms lead. I really tried with them,I could keep the water right as the siblings morphed really hope was lost,but my only asses is I'm one stubbornmother,so we kept trying kept feeding kept trying to get the water right,which has always been easy for us before...NOT NOW.

These three tads know me,they give me the feeding dance,it's been one of the most special froggy things I've had a joy to be part of,and we naturally might still fail but they are right close now.Two have front legs,in weeks/days it might be finished,but damn those legs look good to me.Suddenly the hope is back again here ya go meet the kids
This one is a bit behind the others,







So that's pretty much it.Just a few more pics),all the doubts of not learning enough before these frogs are here also all the graft put in to learn are here aswell a cool little rolla coaster heartaches and highs in equal measure .

[Stu&Shaz]

Froggin huh!!!!!














Oh before I shoot of back to neverland

Something really red to brighten any day





Take care guys,I have little time at the mo., so I hope you understand why I don't post as oft as I would like Hope also you enjoyed all this malarky

best

Stu

[Philsuma]

Always Glad to see you pop in here Stu ! Hope all is well.

Spectacular photos and documentation. Lovely!

Thanks so much for posting.

~P

[Stu&Shaz]

Always Glad to see you pop in here Stu ! Hope all is well.

Spectacular photos and documentation. Lovely!

Thanks so much for posting.

~P

Thanks Phil,we are fine ,it's just time mate,lots of work lots of making sure all froggy chores are right,it's great fun though.
Hope you are good too mate!!
Oh to all my humble apologies for the English lang,it will never be my strong point: I wanted to get it all over while I had the chance,so was rushing a bit, :oops:

best

Stu