Quote Originally Posted by Ra View Post
I thought they were true albinos if they had the red eyes, mine has red eyes and so did the one I owned years ago.
Wrong there about Melanism. Melanism is when the animal has alot of dark pigment, so a melanistic frog would probably be more blue or seafoam green. Its the blue pigment that the albino frogs do not have, making them appear yellow. They are still albinos. SOme albinos have terra cotta coloration and light reds. They are still true albinos, but they are not albinos if they have black eyes, such as the leucistic mutants. Leucism and melanism are both completely different phenomena than albinism.
Im not sure how interchangeable certain phrases are between different species but I know in boa constrictors there are a few variants of albinism and melanism to include hypomelanistic and improved melanistic gene (IMG). Melanin is the pigment best represented by the color black. The process that converts certain chemicals into melanin is regulated by many intermediate steps. When that process is interrupted or stopped completely you in a sense have different shades of albino unless your criteria also includes pink or red eyes and tongues. Some albino boa constrictors have purple tongues, pink eyes, and creamy caramel like coloring. In the boa world this trait is sometimes referred to T+ or tyronase positive since only some of the process of forming melanin is interrupted.

It is mostly agreed upon that albino and albino variations are inherited in simple recessive manor. Perhaps the way frogs pass on albinism is not simple recessive but in a codominant manor. Meaning if only one gene for albino is present you get certain coloring but when two copies of the gene are present you get a super or hyperexagerated form? I know not! I have one C. Cranwelli and he's got pink eyes and his skin color changes from lime green to nearly ripe banana yellow