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RE: dart frog set up help !!!!

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Posted by: Slaytonp at Wed Aug 1 12:26:44 2007  [ Report Abuse ] [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by Slaytonp ]  
   

As Ty says, the set up comes first, and he's correct that the temperatures for darts should range between 65 at night and no higher than 80 during the day, and the humidity should be around 80% of above. A "living" vivarium as he described is the best set-up for darts, in which the wastes are recycled by living plants and mosses. Very little ventilation is needed, so a tight fitting hinged glass or acrylic lid works very well. Lighting can be a fluorescent hood with a bulb around the 5700 Kelvin range--the best range for terrestrial plants.

Darts are diurnal, meaning they are active during the day. since they are not baskers and glass filters out all UV light, their live food must be dusted with vitamins and calcium containing D3. Many of us use Rep-Cal (without phosphorus) and Herptivite either together or alternating.

Live food is essential, as they will no eat anything that is not moving. Probably the easiest to culture and feed is one of the flightless or wingless fruit fly varieties of Drosophila melanogaster, although they will also eat pin head crickets, some beetle larvae and small insects one might capture out doors if no pesticides are used in the vicinity.

Good beginner frogs that get along in groups without regard to sexing them are Dendrobates auratus, (several color morphs are sold), D. leucomelas--a relatively inexpensive beginner's favorite. D. galactonotus, (yellow, orange or red morphs)are rather expensive, but are great long-lived frogs. Phylobates terribilis, (mint green are most readily available) are bold and delightful. Although the general recommendation for space is 5 gallons per frog, this does vary with different species, so 10 gallons per animal is a safer bet.

Beginner frogs which are territorial and should be kept in either mated pairs or 1 female to 2 males, since it is the females who are the fighters, are the D. tinctorius group, which include many different color morphs at varying prices. D. azureus is actually a D. tinctorius color morph, but most people still refer to them as a separate species.

While a few of the tiny thumbnail frogs, such as D. imitator and D. intermedius are bold and actually easy to keep, their tiny size may be intimidating to a beginner, and they like a tall tank with lot of arial perches, especially ephiphytic bromeliads.
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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

D. auratus blue, auratus Ancon Hill, galactonotus orange, galactonotus yellow, fantasticus, reticulatus, imitator, castaneoticus, azureus, pumilio Bastimentos. P. lugubris, vittatus, terribilis mint green, terribilis orange.


   

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