Frog Identification

[Paul Rust]

Grrrr, that's terrible. Another example of a pet shop that has no beep idea.
Someone needs to tell them.

It's not your fault photoninja, you did not know and you had your trust in the pet store like many others will.

Happens all the time Ebony and I am with you, it sickens me too but the almighty dollar is all that matters, the animals are nothing but a vehicle to get at it.

[photoninja]

Happens all the time Ebony and I am with you, it sickens me too but the almighty dollar is all that matters, the animals are nothing but a vehicle to get at it.

I think i'm going to go say something to them. It's not the employees' fault that they didn't know what kind of frogs they were, but it was definitely the store's.
As for now, i don't have another tank for them....but it seems like they stay pretty far away from each other, so i'm hoping they whites will be ok for now

[Kurt]

Well, they use the same water and that is the most likely source for the exchange of toxins. You could house the Kassina in a Rubbermaid box for now.

[tgampper]

This species has three toxins - a peptide that stimulates the colon, evidently having a "laxative" effect, the second a tachykinin, which is responsible for lowering the blood pressure and increasing the heart rate and the third affects the gall bladder. Any mammal eating it will become violently ill.

Keep it away from other frog species, as it is a predator and known to prey on "reed frogs" and "leaf-folding" frogs.

[photoninja]

Do they create the toxins on their own, like toads? or from food they eat in the wild, like dart frogs?

[tgampper]

There isn't much material available on how the frogs create their skin secretions. I am reasonably sure that they will create their own toxins, like toads. It is quite interesting that this species is closely related to the "reed frogs" (Hyperolius) and "leaf-folding" frogs (Afrixalus). They use the toxins as a defensive mechanism.

In Mark-Oliver Rodel's book, Herpetofauna of West Africa, mentions another species, Kassina fusca, is associated with the very aggressive ponerine ants. The skin secretions protect the frog from being stung by the ants.