Hi,

I am an avid aquarium keeper, and I've kept quite a few reptiles. The only frog I've ever kept was a PAC-man which lived for many years.

I tend to keep the fish which do well in my water, instead of adjusting my water to suit a particular fish. I have hard water, approx. 400 TDS, from a well.

I am interested in getting started with some small colorful frogs. I have a bunch of empty tanks I could use. I've read a couple of books on poison arrow frogs (Ralf Heselhaus and an old TFH by Jack Wattley et al.)

I don't like to keep any cricket eating animals, since invariably the crickets get out and annoy me with their sounds.

What kind of frog should I start with? I'd like one with some color and that stays small. I'd also like a hardy species which can be raised with my well water and can eat something other than crickets. It would be nice to breed the frogs and raise the tadpoles. I'd like to set up their habitat with live plants.

The book I read by Ralf Helehaus recommends Phylobates vittatus as a hardy species.

A friend of mine used to keep Dendrobates leucomelas.

I think the Mantellas are pretty, but I am not sure how beginner friendly they are.

I'd like something with some room for error--if I make a mistake I'd hope that the frogs wouldn't die. I'd like a frog species which will eat foods which are easy to culture. I'm not looking for anything rare or unusual, just colorful and small.

Thanks in advance!
J.S.