Scaphiophryne Gottlebei

[clownonfire]

Hi all,

I have been totally obsessed with Malagasy rainbow frogs or Ornate hoppers for a few months now, since I've seen an ad for them on kingsnake.com - the information portal for reptile and amphibian hobbyists.. They are critically endangered and listed by CITES under appendix II which rightfully restricts the export quota (1000 individuals per year).

I'm aware that I'm not about to put my hands on some, and will only get some if I do have the CITES papers claiming they were legally exported. Breeding them in captivity from my researches also seems to be almost inexistent. It might even be a bigger challenge to get some in Canada.

Has anyone worked with them on this forum? Does anyone own some? I'd love to exchange with you.

Here's a great (and sad) article on these wonderful frogs on Edge.

And you can view great pictures of the Malagasy rainbow frog on Arkive.

Eric

I've received a PM that a friend of mine will possibly receiving 2.1 of these by the end of the week.

I have another friend who is interested in starting a breeding project with these but is currently away (I think some of us know who that someone is).

Anyone else has worked with these?

[Tony]

Try Ed K., I think he is part of the Atelopus group.

[clownonfire]

Try Ed K., I think he is part of the Atelopus group.

Ed has been a great help with my Atelopus hoogmoedi. I know he's living through some health issues and I wouldn't want to bother him more than I did. But if I hit a wall with these ones, I'll ask him.

Thanks Tony,

Eric

[SethD]

I have kept them in the past but never bred them though I imagine it would be similar to other explosive breeders. Typical methods will get amplexus. They are not terribly hard to keep and are able to eat quite large food items for their size. The "Red" parts of their coloration can vary from bright red to a dull pink depending on their mood and the temperature. They spend a fair bit of time buried, but they do come out and move around from time to time, they are not completely inactive during daylight hours. I believe they are now considered "critically endangered" primarily due to localized habitat but are not particularly rare or uncommon within that habitat. As long as they are not heavily over collected( and with the quotas now in place I don't think that is a serious issue) or the habitat somehow destroyed(which is always possible in Madagascar) I suspect they will be able to sustain the current level of importation indefinitely or until political issues change importation laws. You might talk to "poison beauties" about them and see if he has got anywhere, last fall if I recall I think he was saying he was getting twenty or so and was going to try to breed them though I assume he has not done so(the breeding part anyway). I remember a year or two ago this was one of the species that a number of TWI/ASN members were talking about and were going to attempt to breed and start up a "species management plan" for. I don't think any of them have had any breeding success at this time though since I haven't seen any CB specimens or heard any more about it.

[clownonfire]

I have kept them in the past but never bred them though I imagine it would be similar to other explosive breeders. Typical methods will get amplexus. They are not terribly hard to keep and are able to eat quite large food items for their size. The "Red" parts of their coloration can vary from bright red to a dull pink depending on their mood and the temperature. They spend a fair bit of time buried, but they do come out and move around from time to time, they are not completely inactive during daylight hours. I believe they are now considered "critically endangered" primarily due to localized habitat but are not particularly rare or uncommon within that habitat. As long as they are not heavily over collected( and with the quotas now in place I don't think that is a serious issue) or the habitat somehow destroyed(which is always possible in Madagascar) I suspect they will be able to sustain the current level of importation indefinitely or until political issues change importation laws. You might talk to "poison beauties" about them and see if he has got anywhere, last fall if I recall I think he was saying he was getting twenty or so and was going to try to breed them though I assume he has not done so(the breeding part anyway). I remember a year or two ago this was one of the species that a number of TWI/ASN members were talking about and were going to attempt to breed and start up a "species management plan" for. I don't think any of them have had any breeding success at this time though since I haven't seen any CB specimens or heard any more about it.

Thank you Seth. When I mentioned that certain someone earlier in the thread, I was referring to Michael (Poison Beauties). He's away until the end of July. We'll catch up when he comes back.

I did contact Valerie C Clark also because of her work in Madasgascar. She has shown interest in working with them too but has not being able to put her hands on them either.

I've also been contacted on a Canadian board closer to home for a Scaphiophryne marmorata. The offer is interesting, I'm considering it, but really want to put my efforts on Ornate hoppers.

Eric

[SethD]

I did contact Valerie C Clark also because of her work in Madasgascar. She has shown interest in working with them too but has not being able to put her hands on them either.

Well if someone is in the USA and really wants some it shouldn't be that hard to get them provided you are willing to pay 60-100$ ea.(gone are the days when these were 20$ ea.) and jump on the opportunity quickly without hesitation. I have seen them for sale several times in the last year or so and expect they will continue to be available sporadically in small numbers over the next 12 months.

I've also been contacted on a Canadian board closer to home for a Scaphiophryne marmorata. The offer is interesting, I'm considering it, but really want to put my efforts on Ornate hoppers.

Those are cool too and are cheaper. I think my favorite scaphiophryne species is madagascariensis, but I haven't seen any of those in a couple years, just some pustulosa and marmorata mislabeled as madagascariensis. Actually, I take that back, I saw a small group for sale on kingsnake.com mislabeled as marmorata a month or two ago. Assuming the pic's were of the actual frogs of course. Right now it looks like there are only some pustulosa on kingsnake being sold under the generic name of "Madagascan marbled hoppers". Still, for someone wanting to get started with the genus 5 for a hundred is a lot more reasonable than what gottlebei now costs when you can find them.

[clownonfire]

Well if someone is in the USA and really wants some it shouldn't be that hard to get them provided you are willing to pay 60-100$ ea.(gone are the days when these were 20$ ea.) and jump on the opportunity quickly without hesitation.

I can't speak entirely for Valerie, but from our discussions, I know she would not get any if they didn't come with CITES papers. It's a position I respect.

Right now it looks like there are only some pustulosa on kingsnake being sold under the generic name of "Madagascan marbled hoppers". Still, for someone wanting to get started with the genus 5 for a hundred is a lot more reasonable than what gottlebei now costs when you can find them.

Prices in the US are cheaper than in Canada, not by much though. The offers have been ranging from $35-$45. For Ornate hoppers, in the higher range. Weren't they being sold on kingsnake for $100/each a month or two ago?

Eric