help caring for river frog (Lithobates heckscheri) tadpoles

[awetzel]

Hello,

I have a 20 gallon aquarium (wider than tall) with 6 river frog tadpoles living in it. Most seem around the same age (same size teeny tiny back legs forming) and one seems to be near the end of his tadpole stage, with larger back legs and nubs that poke out more everyday where the front legs will be. Unable to upload pictures for some reason.

I give them a combination of algae wafers, shredded greens, fish flakes, bloodworms and dehydrated shrimp. They seem to be doing alright but I worry about one who is the smallest and seems to have little folds of skin on his sides. They aren't large and hanging, but the others don't seem to have the same lines. I wonder if he is malnourished. He doesn't seem any less active than the others but I don't have time to watch them all day either. Should I be worried?

Also, the largest I described should be ready to have a different set up where he can crawl out of the water if he wants to soon, from what I understand. I haven't been able to find much species specific information. Am I right? How long do I have before he needs to be put in a different tank?

Thanks,

Amy

[awetzel]

Update: Apparently I have poor observational skills. Or the tank water was murkier than I realized before changing yesterday. I now see that all of them have these folds in their skin except for the larger one.

I have made a new observation. Some of them have dark bumps on their underside, 2 or 3 that are the same color as their backs, while the rest of the belly is a light gray. These are definitely new developments within the last week or so. What are these?

[BrittsBugs]

The river frog (Lithobates heckscheri)
Tadpole pictured below


Breeding:
Breeding takes place between April and August with males calling from the edge of ponds and swamps from April to July. The call has been described as "a deep, low-pitched, rolling snore".

Eggs:
The eggs are laid in a floating layer among emergent vegetation, a clutch numbering several thousand eggs which hatch after about three days.

Tadpoles:
The tadpoles are at first a dark color but become much paler over time with a dark edge to the tail fin. They congregate in the shallows in the daytime, sometimes in dense swarms, but move into deep water at night. They feed on both animal and vegetable matter. They remain as tadpoles for a long period, overwintering once or twice, and reaching a snout-to-vent length of 97 millimetres (3.8 in) or more.

Metamorphosis:
After metamorphosis, the newly-emerged juveniles are 30 to 52 millimetres (1.2 to 2.0 in) long and move away from the margins of the water. The large number of juveniles compared to the relatively small number of adults indicates a high mortality rate for newly emerged young.

Sounds like you should someone incorporate a set up of a land hill into the tadpole tank so they may sit in shallow or deep waters and leave the water as they are ready. If this is indeed the tadpoles you have. Does the picture resemble the tadpoles?


-BrittsBugs
Reptile & Amphibian Enthusiast
Insect Breeder
Former Rat Breeder
Pets: 6 AUS WTF's, 1 Hon Milk, 1 SM Corn, 1 BP, 5 H.Crabs, 1 C.Gecko, 4 RB Newts, 6 Betas, 5 MH Roaches, 1 L.Gecko, 1 W.Hognose, & so much more