40b Dart tank - Natural style build Journal

[Geo]

Bro you have more then enough shrimp to start a colony. They won't take long to breed once they are settled in. They can be quite indestructible to be honest as long as your water has no extremes in regard to contaminants and chemicals. You may end up having to give some away eventually. I would also limit the fish too as the idea is to let them go about living their lives, acquiring what they need from the water but not to allow them to consume everything in it. ie If the frogs breed and happen to do what mine did and deposit the tadpoles into the water you may want the natural biology of the water to supplement the new tadpoles' diet a bit (although you may need to add algae wafers and such to ensure everyone down there is eating). The waiting bit is torture. I am contemplating starting another tank upstairs in a few months that is going to be all visual eye candy and already I am getting the itchy frog purchaser finger lol

[Geo]

We have an inspirational dynasty starting here lol Bill's tank build inspired me, I inspired you and you will inspire someone else. Pass it on. That is what forums like this one should be all about. Very cool. Froggers Rule!

[DigitalPunk]

LoL yeah that is my sticking point with the shrimp I want enough to keep the water somewhat clean without having so many that it is robbed of all nutrients. I am hoping and trying to setup the tank so that they frogs can lay their eggs over the water or have access to deposit their tadpoles in the water.

I bought some Algae wafers and some blood worms to help supplement their diet a bit very sparsely.

[DigitalPunk]

I have plans for a RETF tank that I hope to start on soon. I can't get enough of this!

[Geo]

There should be a forum for frogaholics lol.

[DigitalPunk]

Planted a Sansevieria Trifasciata 'Gold Hahnii', Davallia Trichomanoides 'Black Rabbit's Foot Fern', Neratanthus 'Christmas Holly' - Goldfish Plant, and then some sort of Dwarf Elephant ear isn plant.

I took some pictures but they turned out crappy. I'll try to take more tomorrow.

Also got the fogger put into place and tested. The ultra sonic fogger had a red light on it that ruined the effect when it was on. I covered the red light in about 8 layers of black paint and then topped that in clear silicon, tested it and took a short video of it in motion. I uploaded it to Photo Bucket, not sure how the streaming quality of it will be but here it is.

http://s79.photobucket.com/user/Dirg..._1290.mp4.html

I wanted it placed behind the cork round but that just wouldn't work out the way I wanted. I have the fogger placed in a small plastic container that has holes drilled in it to allow water into it and the top open above the waterline to let the fog out.

[DigitalPunk]

I am torn between doing a spices of Dart frog or getting some Mantellas for this viv. I have never really considered Mantellas before now, but I like that they are not super popular and if I could keep them and breed them I feel like it could be a big help to the hobby as a whole, but then I look at some of the PDFs and I want them too lol.

So what do y'all think Mantella or PDF?


On a tank update note - Its only been a few days and the moss has started on its standard browning phase after being introduced into the Paludarium. The plants seem to being doing good so far. I will be placing a final plant order this week and will be getting one more piece of wood and a temp/humidity probe.

[deranged chipmunk]

I think you know my vote without even stating it lol

[DigitalPunk]

lol Yeah I figured your vote went without saying

The more I read the more I am leaning towards Mantellas. I really like the thought of keeping a species that is not widely bred in captivity and hopefully adding to the CB population. Are there any reputable Mantella breeders out there? I see that LLL Reptiles has them on their site, but no one there can answer with 100% accuracy if they are CB or not.

[DigitalPunk]

Ok it is decided. I am going to get 6 M. Betsileo Hoping to get 4 males and 2 females. I just need to save up a little money first. We have Springtails Breeding and Spanish Orange Isopods in a breeding setup as well. We have fruit flies going, but will need to up the number of cultures we keep going to support the added mouths we will be feeding.

I am attempting to breed crickets as well so we could also have some pinhead crickets for them to mix up their diet some.


The tank is looking good. The plants seem to be adapting well to it. some of the moss has started to green up again, all in all I am very pleased with how this tank is progressing. The cork bark in the corner has a bit of white mold on the back of it. I am deputing on pulling some of the springs from my RETF terrarium and putting in this tank, the Spring Colony in there is massive now. The water has cleared up a lot and the Shrimp seem to be thriving. Hard to tell if any of them have died because they spend most of their time under the main rock in the darkness.

[DigitalPunk]

Final supply order placed for the tank. I ordered 4 plants (though I doubt they all make it into the tank), Another piece of driftwood, A couple of Split Seep pods (I got those just to see how they look, not sure if I will use them or not), 25 Insect cups and vented lids, Some Oak leaf litter, and a temp/humidity digital sensor.

I also placed the order for 5 M. Betsileo, I wanted 5 and wanted to wait a bit longer before placing the order, but they only had 5 left and I couldn't find anywhere else with them in stock or even offered other than Understory in Canada and the shipping from their is crazy coming to the states. I will keep my eyes open and try to pick up some more for the tank as time goes on.

[deranged chipmunk]

I got a guy in jersey that has m. Betsileo available. He ships.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Rare...9826366512731/

[DigitalPunk]

Awesome, Thanks Bill!

[deranged chipmunk]

No problem!

[Andrew exotics]

Hey Paul where did you get that moss?!Love the look of it

[DigitalPunk]

Hey Paul where did you get that moss?!Love the look of it

I got all the cork, wood, and moss from the below site. I love it! It took 2 of the large bags to cover what I did with a little left over.

New England Herpetoculture LLC - Moss

[DigitalPunk]

5 M. Betsileo are in route from LLL Reptile as I type. They will be here first thing in the morning tomorrow. Hopefully they will be ok. It is freaking cold here...

[DigitalPunk]

They are here and all look healthy and are most def alive. Once they were all in the tank a couple ran off and hid and the others explored a bit and started calling. Its so Cool! lol I love them already!

I got the pictures I could before they all disappeared into the hides and leaf litter. They are stunning!





One of them hopped up on the glass to show off his/her belly markings.

[deranged chipmunk]

Awesome Paul!! LLL is where I got mine. Such a great company to deal with. I plan on getting more from them if I don't find anything at the show in white plains in April.

[DigitalPunk]

Thanks Bill! These are the 2nd frogs I have bought from them. Got 2 of the Reds from them back in Jan.


Had a minor scare, One of them jumped off into the water and was on a rock under the main landmass. I spent 15 mins trying to figure out how I was going to stage a rescue. I decided to leave him alone and let him sort it out on his own (there is no way to access that rock without destroying the landmass and the other 4 frogs). I went back down a few minutes ago and watched him jump into the water and swim to the glass and climb out. I don't know what ratio of males to females I ended up with and will attempt to sex them when I feed them for the first time later today.