40 gal Phyllobates terribilis terrarium

[John]

I've been working on this terrarium off and on for the past month. I've actually had the aquarium since the July aquarium sale at Petco. It hasn't been cheap, but it sure looks nice and is a nice part of our living room too. My wife has never shown an interest in this hobby, but she was taking photos to show her friends today!

Click the photo to blow it up to 1000 pixels wide.



It's a 40 US gallon breeder aquarium converted into a terrarium for the Golden Poison frog, Phyllobates terribilis. The dimensions of the terrarium are (LxWxH) 36x18x16 inches. It's hard to find a stand for this size terrarium. I got this one from DrsFosterSmith.com. The other nightmare was getting a lid. In the end, I purchased a versa top and chopped 2 inches off one of the glass pieces. I used my own hinge (more transparent than the one that comes with the versa top), and threw away the plastic gap piece that comes with the top. I made my own vent (about 3 inches in width, and the whole length of the front of the terrarium). The vent keeps the front glass 100% clear of condensation. There is a mistking system with 4 nozzles that goes off every 3 hours for about 5 seconds of misting. This keeps the humidity up while the vent allows a lot of ventilation. I learned the "big vent with misters" trick from seeing Brooklyn Dart Frogs' Andy Grossi's terrariums in NYC. I drilled 3x 5/8 inch holes in the rear (uncut) panel of glass. 2 holes for misters (2 nozzles per bulkhead) and 1 hole in the corner for the heating cable and thermostat probe.

The lighting is a 2 tube T5 HO 78W fixture. The terrarium is located in the living room, which gets a little colder than the temperatures I'd be comfortable with for the frogs. Also, T5 lighting generates very little heat, unlike other fixtures, so the terrarium is heated by a hydor heating cable in the upper layer of the substrate, and the heating is monitored by a thermostat with a probe inside the terrarium.

There is an eggcrate false bottom hidden by a wall of gravel on both sides and the front. The background is tree fern panels with some cork bark pieces (large hollows at the back of the cork bark were filled in with Great Stuff Window and Door). The tree fern is attached to the wall of the terrarium with aquarium silicone, and the cork bark is attached to the tree fern in the same way.

The large piece of wood in the middle of the terrarium is Malaysian Driftwood I've had for over a year. The terrarium has just been planted so it's a little sparse. It will grow in quickly though with that nice lighting. There is a pond on the right hand side which is for future tadpole deposition.

The substrate is a base layer of coconut husk, covered with Ron Gagliardo's Atlanta Botanical Gardens mix (ABG). The leaves are Live Oak. I will probably add some more leaves.

The whole thing was finished on Saturday and I added the frogs the next day (I've never had an issue doing that with dart frogs). There's a lot of growing out to do and probably several more plants to go in there, hence the slightly bare look. This evening (Monday) I noticed 3 frogs up to no good in the coconut hut on the left of the terrarium. They're a little young yet to breed (13 months) but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. The photo was taken just before lights out, hence why the frogs aren't visible - they've gone to their sleeping places for the night.

Thoughts/comments/criticism welcome.

[rcteem]

Looks awesome...is that going to a riccia floor??? Cant wait to see this tank in 6 months when everything is grown in

[John]

Thanks Chris. Riccia on the right I've been growing for a while. The bleached out Riccia in the middle arrived a few days ago in the mail and is slowly dying (it was traveling in freezing weather for a week +),

[rcteem]

Thanks Chris. Riccia on the right I've been growing for a while. The bleached out Riccia in the middle arrived a few days ago in the mail and is slowly dying (it was traveling in freezing weather for a week +),

If you have a fish tank, move it to there for a week or two...thats what Im doing with a bunch of different tropical mosses I just got from taiwan

[AAAfrogs]

Hey john, tried to send ya a PM on dendroboard, but says your PM limit is reached... Send me a PM there w/ your address, or email me at aaafrogs@hotmail.com We'll get another bunch shipped out to ya, and not having a holiday should get to you in a couple days.

Aaron

[Stemcellular]

Looking good, John. However, I would add a few larger aroids as terribilis really like to climb and will appreciate something that can hold their weight. Also, mine lay eggs on the monstera all the time. If you are going this wknd, I can bring you a nice Philo. Mamei cutting.

[Digital]

That Terrarium great looking. You need get some pic's up of the frogs in their as well. I wish I had the room for something that big.

[RikoAustria]

Tank looks good John. I'm partial to ferns so I would probably ad an ET fern somewhere in there. But all in all it looks good. I like the way you setup the wood in the middle.

[John]

Looking good, John. However, I would add a few larger aroids as terribilis really like to climb and will appreciate something that can hold their weight. Also, mine lay eggs on the monstera all the time. If you are going this wknd, I can bring you a nice Philo. Mamei cutting.

I am going. I've already made some deals! So please hit me up with those plants. It's hard to tell from the photo, but there's quite a bit of height differences across the terrarium, and I've really noticed them climbing in the bromeliads and all over the background (they keep knocking down my plants!). So please give me anything you are willing to part with. I don't believe I have monsterra either.

Tank looks good John. I'm partial to ferns so I would probably ad an ET fern somewhere in there. But all in all it looks good. I like the way you setup the wood in the middle.

I like ferns too. What does ET stand for? It's escaping me.

[RikoAustria]

I like ferns too. What does ET stand for? It's escaping me.

I have no idea what the ET stands for, but it's one of my faves.... it's the one in the middle of my cobalt viv:

[MichaelS]

I like ferns too. What does ET stand for? It's escaping me.[/QUOTE]

Extra terrestrial. I think the rhizomes are supposed to look like an m & m eating space alien.

[RikoAustria]

I didn't think the extra terrestrial part applied to the plant, but alas, Google has once again helped out!

Caterpillar or E.T. Fern, (Polypodium formosanum: Carter and Holmes Orchids

A very interesting foot fern that will slowly grow to cover the outside of the container it lives in. Allow to grow in a hanging basket or pot to accommodate the roots. ‘Feet’ are light green in color suggestive of ‘caterpillars’ while the foliage reminds you of ‘extraterrestrial’ fingers. Mature height will be 12”-24. Should be grown in a well draining, peat based mix.