1½ year ago I started keeping Ceratophrys frogs again after a pause of some years where I focused mainly on invertebrates. Now I only keep frogs (Ceratophrys and Xenopus). I am interested in husbandry, captive breeding and genetics of these frogs.

For some time I have been reading this forum and it seems that there are some very knowledgeable people posting here, so I hope someone can make the following matters more clear to me.

Firstly, the hybrids between different Ceratophrys species, are they fertile? If they are, what crosses will result in viable offspring?

For example:

Backcrossing to either one of the parent species?
(ornata-x-cranwelli X pure ornata (or pure cranwelli))

Mating two hybrids of the same kind?
(ornata-x-cranwelli X ornata-x-cranwelli)

Mating two dissimilar hybrids?
(ornata-x-cranwelli X cornuta-x-cranwelli)


Second, I have the possibility to buy what is stated to be color variants of C. cranwelli: “Lime green”, “Peppermint”, and “Apricot”. “Peppermint” is the only one I have seen pictures of. That is on a Japanese website, where it is labelled as a hybrid (of untold composition). Are these forms hybrids or are they color variants of pure C. cranwelli? If they are hybrids, what are they hybrids of?

If anyone has pictures or descriptions of “Lime green” and/or “Apricot”, please share!


I post these questions because I am considering buying some of the (rather expensive) color variants. However, they are of little interest to me if they are infertile hybrids.

Kind regards,
Nicholas Ditzel

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