Dart frog price tags

[bshmerlie]

I also beleive that making ANYTHING illegal doesnt stop anything. That just makes price go up usually.

There are many species that are endangered and not legal for import or sale in the US. There are many countries that have made it illegal to export their frogs.
It does work so how can you say it doesn't help anything? By the way,Captive Bred Red Eyes can easily be found for 20 bucks so" damn high" is an exaggeration. Unless of course,someone with 20 bucks is considered the" elite".

[Leefrogs]

Did u see previous posts, they are 60 in stores, on sale, rarely for 40. Can be found and are found are different things. And those 20 dollar ones are probably old and/or maybe sick. And I'm sure there are plenty of endangered frogs in collections. Ever hear of smuggling? the world is full of loop holes

[pez]

Ok, so here is how I see the situation.

Prices in some frogs may be high, yes we all know that. Frogs with high prices are also "rare" frogs, yes ok. But that is ok in some way because many of this frogs are wild caught, imagine for a moment what it would be if wild caught frogs were sold at 20$ in stores (Sadly there are some cases were this happens and some red eyed tree-frogs and other species are taken away from their habitat) there populations would decrease at a faster rate. Frogs would be affected not only by the chytrid fungus and the global warming, but also by the frog-keeping hobby. How would all of you feel if you knew that you are one of the main causes of the amphibian decline???

So, what i'm trying to say is that is not right to sell frogs at so expensive prices, nor taking them out of their natural habitat to then be the rest of their lives between glass walls. What should be done is that "frog sellers" should try to breed these expensive frogs (the ones that are wild caught), and in that way help amphibian populations in the wild.


Countries should have laws to protect frogs and ban exporting frogs. I think that all Agalychnis and the Cruziohyla calcarifer are listed on CITES II, and that Costa Rica banned the frog exporting but I have seen in other forums people that has an Agalychnis annae an endemic species from here, so all of us should think when we are about to buy a wild caught frog, and countries should try to help to preserve the ecology.

[Leefrogs]

I don't understand how Americans can actually pay locals in Mexico to protect monarch butterfly nesting sites and not do the same with frogs. It's because Americans don't collect monarchs. Why can't the same be done with frogs, it's a greed problem. They love them, but only when theyre in a tank. It's amphibian arks job to preserve special species. Not collectors or breeders or hobbiests. Once ark has done enough then its our turn.

[JBear]

I think the hobby itself is far too small for everyone who breeds darts as a hobby to pay the bills with. That is one of the probs. People think they are gonna live off of frogs and when no one is paying,they are left working a full time job and pissed about people undercutting them. In truth the frogs purchased at the "undercut" cost are just as healthy... Truth be told, if you were not breeding and establishing yourself years ago, you will never compete with the sponsors and make a living for any long duration.

When and if my Tincs start breeding, it will be for trade, or $20 for 2 tads, or $20 for 1 froglet. That is reasonable, and I think good. However I won't pedal them to unknowns at expos for the sake of a dollar. I would only sell to people who at least have read and researched and preferably has experience with amphibs.

JBear

[poison beauties]

the only thing JBear is that there are people making a living off just breeding dart frogs. I know a few of them and others that live off what they made in the hobby as far as frogs, bugs and supply sales go.
I do agree that a sale for no other purpose than to make a buck is not needed when there are many hobbyists out there that will do the research before buying. In the last 11 years I have bred and sold a few thousand dart frogs with every one being sold under market value or below board prices but I have had waitlists for most frogs or other means of selling them to qualified herp shops but not everyone is that lucky. If your going to sell them on the boards why not let them go at market value? Underpricing them creates issues in the long run and can drive some species out of the hobby while others are looked at as cheap beginners frogs. I find it funny how the average new hobbyists gets on the boards and posts want ads for sexed or proven pairs before they have even gotten the experience to care for the frogs they want to breed them. I see it as only one reason, to make money. Somehow this hobby turned into a collaboration of many small business's trading frogs back and forth.
To under value a frog and flood the market with them by selling them dirt cheap only hurts the frogs stability in the hobby. When I got into this hobby there was no classifieds full of sexed or proven pairs. you had to do the work yourself.

Michael

[landshark]

Going back to the red eyed tree frog issue, nearly all of the ones I've seen in the local stores are captive born froglets ranging $29-$39.

[bshmerlie]

Baby red eyes are often sold for $20.