E. Anthonyi "Santa Isabel"

[bshmerlie]

Well Cheri, between you and a friend, I decided to get some Epipedobates anthonyi "Rio Saladillo". That's the race with the blue stripes.

I've actually looked at getting some of those too. I really think the E. anthonyi are underrated frogs. They are really great frogs with a great call and lots of personality. I actually think they might be the best dart frog out there for anyone who wants to learn about and refine their tadpole care skills. They are bold and active at all times. I love them.

Here's are some photos of Tony Jr. two days out of the water. Sorry not the greatest photos I know, but I don't quite have your camera skills and all the "display" leaves ready to go. Little Tony kept moving. I don't know if you can tell but he is already showing his racing stripes.

.

[LilyPad]

Yay!! So Cool! I can definitely see some stripes going in the second picture!

[John]

and all the "display" leaves ready to go. Little Tony kept moving. I don't know if you can tell but he is already showing his racing stripes.

Haha, does it seem that false? These photos were taken in terrarium:









Same for this Santa Isabel:

[John]

I meant to say, your little Tony looks like he's doing well. What are you going to feed them with? I've been told that the stripes can take up to 2 years to develop fully by the way.

[bshmerlie]

I've been culturing tons of springtails in preparation for these guys plus melanogaster fruit flies. Their stripes are becoming more vivid with every passing day. I don't think the stripes are the issue its the red body color that takes the time. I'll see if I can get a better picture of little tony in the morning so you can see the difference a couple of days make with the stripes. They are definately visible now. I use SuperPig for the frogs and a color enhancing fish flake for the tads.

[John]

Superpig definitely does the job but I find it unnecessary. Why? Because Repashy Calcium+ (formerly known as Calcium+ICB) contains the same color enhancers but in lower amounts. They have pretty much the same effect, just slightly less pronounced (you should see my Matecho tinctorius).

Are you sure you'll need the springtails for the metamorphs? I have a feeling they will be able to take wingless Drosophila melanogaster since my juveniles are eating D. hydei fruit flies without issue. Here's a quote from Poison Frogs (2007) by Lötters, Jungfer, Henkel, and Schmidt:

As soon as the front legs appear, the tadpoles are placed in angled containers with a water level of not more than 1 cm that lead to a "terrestrial" part of some brown leaves. When the metamorphs have eventually left the water, they can be housed in small terraria of maybe 20 x 30 cm. Froglets are initially dark brown with an indistinct light striped pattern. Measuring between 9-11 mm in length, they are capable of managing Drosophila right away. Unfortunately, the offspring of wild-caught specimens with a lot of white in their pattern are usually much less attractive than their parents, as their light stripes are often much narrower. The reasons for this phenomenon are as yet unknown.

[berksmike]

I generally feed my neomorphs a mixture of mels and springs. Most will take mels straight away but have found a small number wont take them for a while so the springs are good for that.
Here's a clip of some of mine having a feast of springtails (sorry for the picture quality):

Baby Phantasmal Dart Frogs feeding on springtails - YouTube

[John]

What kind of melanogaster are they Mike? I generally find that frogs can often manage the wingless mutant when they can't handle the winged kinds.