What Species Can Co-Habitat?

[zlmitchell]

I was looking into getting some Red-Eyed Tree Frogs but would also like to get some Poison Darts... Is it possible for them to be in the same tank together? I have a 75 Gallon waiting for when i order my frogs. Any help with introducing frogs together and experiences of co-habitation of different species would be appreciated.

[HerpNwny14]

Pretty much 99% of people will tell you not to mix for obvious reasons such as parasites,tank requirments,natural toxicity of certain species and most commonly stress.
Just because a frog may have "similar" requirments doesnt mean they can live together....you have to understand that a place like the rainforest has thousands of species of frogs but how often do they really see each other or are near each other.....when you try to cram different species in a small tank often stress is the biggest issue. Just dont do it.....especially with these species,there are SOME people that i know who have successfully mixed green/gray tree frog, big eye/peacock ornate tree frog, various reed frog species, marmoratas/clown tree frog but your always putting your frogs life at risk in the long run.
If your looking into red eyes but want "different" looking frogs you could always get albino red eyes w/ regular red eyes and there are some breeders out there who have color morphds from time to time,a healthy happy red eye can easily live 7+ years.....id look into doing that before mixing

[zlmitchell]

Thanks for the speedy response,
I agree with you on most of those things. First of i am very experiences with damn near all types of animals and currently have a variety of pets numbering in 100+. I have always thought about creating a Vivarium. Like i said earlier I will be setting it up in a 75 gallon tank. which is more than adequate space for my red eared slider and accompaniments to get away from each other. With that fact I am pretty sure that if they wanted to be to be apart they can find places to rest.

I have researched quite a bit and on many occasions have read that either born in captivity/fed the no poison producing food stops poison dart frogs from being toxic. But i have on few occasions read that if they feel threatened that they could become or excrete poison. I am not saying in any fact that i know better, because i don't. I am just stating that i am aware that some species do not get along and would rather be separate.

If not tree frogs and poison together what about different types of poison frogs? Does anyone have an horror stories or experiences that could help me. Any and all comments are appreciated and welcomed.

Thanks

[1beataway]

I do not have experience with red-eyed tree frogs or darts, but I know that it's a bad idea to mix frogs because a lot of them secret toxins that are harmful to other amphibians. it doesn't have to be a poison dart to poison another frog. When it comes to secretions, I'm not sure how big you would need to avoid contamination; they'll be sharing the same water, soil, and plants.

[Kurt]

That is also frowned upon. First of all most darts are very territorial. Second, you don't want tobe producing hybrids or mutts. Darts breed easier than most frogs. Even keeping two or morphs of the same species is frowned upon. If you kept, say, cobalt and citronella tincs together any offspring produced would not be welcomed in the dart frog community and you would be stuck with them.

Just one more thing red-eyes get big enough to eat most darts.

[bshmerlie]

I also wanted different looking frogs in my tank so I got the Red Eyed Tree Frog, the Albino Red Eyed Tree Frog and the Xanthic Red Eyed Tree Frog. They are all going to be living in a 36X18X24 Exo Terra. They are all technically the same species so I don't have to worry so much about different toxins, but they do look different. I had a friend who had a pretty large tank and had Red Eyes with Darts and he never had any one frog for more than a year or two. He never knew why they would die off, they just did. I think it's better to be safe than sorry. They are living creatures here that we keep in small enclosures compared to the habitat that they should be roaming in. We do have a morale obligation to provide them with a safe and comfortable habitat. And also one as large as we can reasonably provide for their prosperity.

[zlmitchell]

Thanks for the advice i will look into a smaller tank then and get two setups.

Anyone have experience handling the tree frogs or poison darts. As i described before i have read that they can be non-toxic if in the right conditions but does that mean you can touch them bare handed? Same goes for the red eyes. It t something you always need to be every careful about and wear gloves when putting your hands in the cage?

Thanks

[bshmerlie]

You don't have to wear gloves although some people do. Just wash your hands before and after. I also spray my hands with the same water I mist the cage with before I touch the frogs. Remember no chlorine. They really don't like to be held and it does stress them out. They are mostly a look at kind of pet.

[Deku]

A 75gallon aquarium FILLED to the brim WITH an Above basking area IS the BARE minimum for ONE ADULT MALE red eared sliders. Females need a 125. A pair 150. You need HEAVY filtration for them. I have had a couple over the years, and now I only have texas map turtles. But I know now that those were the messiest turtles ever. They pooped like a baby they ate like a baby. Again Check what you have. One 75g=one MALE. Males size tend to go up from 5inches-8inches. Mine was 5inches and STILL in a 75 gallon he was a pig. You also have to watch for ammonia readings. Water should be soft/acidic, as it helps prevent fungus. YOU STILL need a dry area. A turtle dock DOES NOT work for this. Again build an above tank basking area which will stay dry. put heat lamps and uvb/uva lights on top.

As for the frogs, just dont mix any animals together buddy. Not even different color morphs. ONLY THING I would EVER say you could POSSIBLY mix together would be the "xenopus" family. Meaning african clawed frogs and its varieties. BUT THATS IT. Nothing else can go together. Trust me even if you take it to the vet, it wont kill all the parasites the animal has. Just go with what people have been telling you. No diff color morphs together, no diff species. Nothing.

[Kurt]

You don't have to wear gloves although some people do. Just wash your hands before and after. I also spray my hands with the same water I mist the cage with before I touch the frogs. Remember no chlorine.

And no soaps, sanitizing gels, or any thing else like them.

[SethD]

To answer the original question it would probably be quite possible to house several different types of reed, glass, clown, or hourglass tree frogs with several different types of darts within a suitable enclosure if the keeper knows what he is doing and knows what to watch out for. It has been done before and will be done again. If you attempt such a thing though you need to know enough about frogs to know if the species your thinking about mixing are bold eaters(don't want one species eating all the food), share the same environmental needs, are about the same size, if they are likely to be aggressive, territorial or easily stressed etc.

That is just a incomplete list of factors to consider and there is quite a bit of potential for issues to arise if things are not carefully monitored. Consider it something for advanced keepers only. Even most advanced keepers don't mix very often because there is rarely a good reason to do so and it increases the chances of problems.

[zlmitchell]

A 75gallon aquarium FILLED to the brim WITH an Above basking area IS the BARE minimum for ONE ADULT MALE red eared sliders. Females need a 125. A pair 150. You need HEAVY filtration for them. I have had a couple over the years, and now I only have texas map turtles. But I know now that those were the messiest turtles ever. They pooped like a baby they ate like a baby. Again Check what you have. One 75g=one MALE. Males size tend to go up from 5inches-8inches. Mine was 5inches and STILL in a 75 gallon he was a pig. You also have to watch for ammonia readings. Water should be soft/acidic, as it helps prevent fungus. YOU STILL need a dry area. A turtle dock DOES NOT work for this. Again build an above tank basking area which will stay dry. put heat lamps and uvb/uva lights on top.

Wow... went on a rant now didn't we. This discussion is not about turtles, only in passing I said that I have one, and yes he has everything he needs and a large tank, thanks for asking...

Thanks to everyone else for their expertise, it seems that I will be setting up two tanks, one for the red eyes and another for the poison darts that i choose. Any other responses would be appreciated and helpful in the long run I'm sure.

Thanks again.