Golden Sedge Frogs (Hyperolius Puncticulatus),

[John]

My hat is off to Terry on this one - thank you for going the extra mile.

[Buck Rogers]

Sorry for the late reply on this, you know there are so many species of Hyperolius in Africa that for me to give you spot on advice will not really help you.

I can tell you a bit about the species we have in Southern Africa and that might help. Most live around water pans that dry up in winter. Temps in the day around water holes/pans get hot and humid, evenings are also warm (I would say mid to high 20 degrees C) and also humid in Summer months. Winter months would get dry but hot and maybe a bit chillier in the evenings. Heavy rainfalls, usually late afternoon and evening showers, its very rare to have morning or mid day showers. I would think they feed on small flying insects, mosquitoes and perhaps small spiders. I tried keep a similar species a while back and had low success rates, but I think my temps were not high enough.

I would consider a set up to be all water, with a fish tank heater in to raise temps and humidity, plants in ceramic holders and even some bamboo and such. They will not come down to land or swim, but this is natural to what they live like.

As I said this is just based on my observations of similar species and may not be spot on.

[salad dodger]

i have a pair of these & have been keeping them in a 12x12x12 exo
i have about 2 1/2 - 3" of really moist coir & a gravel filled water dish
the tank is lightly planted & they spend most of the day half concealed
night time is a different matter though , they are really active & noisy .
they are thriving on size 1 crix which i dust once weekly .
ive had them for about 10 months now & have to say they are extremely entertaining .
if i had to pick a favourite of all my phibs i think these would be top of the list .
im hoping to expand my colony at the next ahs at donny as they are always available there (not far from you)

[Mike]

I am considering getting some of these guys for a Tanzanian biotope enclosure, but had some more questions. I was looking at the ad here: kingsnake.com Classifieds: REED FROGS:GREEN GLASS, ARGUS, GOLD SEDGE, RETICULATED AND MORE. and it looks like two types are sold.

The gold sedge which look like this: Hyperolius puncticulatus_2 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

and the reticulated which look like this: Spotted Reed Frog (H. puncticulatus) on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Are these two variations within the same interbreeding population and should be mixed in captivity, or are they different subspecies/morphs that don't interbreed in the wild and should be kept separate?

Also I know they can be loud but just how loud are they in comparison to say.. Dendropsophus ebraccatus? Trying to compare their call to a frog I have so I know what I may be getting myself into..

Mike

[Kurt]

Are these two variations within the same interbreeding population and should be mixed in captivity, or are they different subspecies/morphs that don't interbreed in the wild and should be kept separate?

According to Alan Channing and Kim M. Howell's Amphibians of East Africa, "A visit to any pond where this species is breeding will show a remarkble array of color patterns" So I would say that you can mix the different color patterns in the same enclosure.

[StephenLS]

Hi Mike

I can confirm the noise produced by these is particularly loud - I would say on a par with if not louder and more irritating than American Green Tree Frogs!

I keep mine downstairs and they are still loud enough to wake me - and my rather annoyed girlfriend in the middle of the night - having said that - I absolutely love them - there is always 1 visible during the day and activity kicks off about 2 hours before lights out. They are very active and really interesting to watch - you could try installing a moonlight bulb!

I would second the comments in the article referenced above - plenty of light and heat = happy frogs.
Mine get 12 hours of bright light a day and the temperature in the enclosure is 27C (sorry can't work in farenheit)
The tank is 50/50 water and land but I'm rethinking this and maybe going for the whole water with reeds and branches approach shortly.

Under these conditions they have been breeding regularly!


Ta


Steve

[Kumka]

Hello!
I support H. puncticulatus «Tanzania". This species reproduces well when confined in terrariums 40x40x30. In this terrarium 5 (2.3) frogs. Lot no. At the bottom of the water 5-6 cm Many Scindapsus. Background temperature of 24-28. Feeding cockroaches (up to 1 cm), through the day. Every day - fruit fly. Tadpoles feed Tetra. First feeding young - Drosophila.

Sorry: the text is translated from the Russian home computers.