Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Does anyone know where I can find a picture. I noticed that some imports will be coming from Ecuador to Holland with some atelopus species and I was wondering how these look.
I really don't like the idea of atelopus imports but I will be taking a look when they come in.

Greetings Remco

The only picures I've seen have been of A. varius in JEWELS OF THE RAINFOREST and a couple of photos on a net search, but no ignescens. But since the book was written, a lot of taxonomy divisions have changed, so maybe varius was divided up. They are certainly startlingly beautiful frogs, as well as being variable, as the name implies.

There are two ways of looking at imports, provided they are going to some experts who can figure out how to care for them and breed them. One is of course, protecting the frog from irresponsible mass collecting. That should be done no matter how common the animal is. The other is however, that the habitat destruction and perhaps climate changes are a major causes of impending extinction of many species. Perhaps the only ones to survive eventually will be captive specimens. It's too bad someone didn't go in for collecting pet DoDos and passenger pigeons before they were all killed off.

I wonder if frognet.org would be able to help you? Good luck. Be sure to share if you find some photos.
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Patty
Lost River, Idaho

I have a book called "Harlequin Forgs" that may have them in there. I'll check
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P. sauvagei
derekb15.tripod.com/tropicaltreasures

Breeding Atelopus as an excuse for exports?? Maybe, but...
..as you might know.. there is a little problem with breeding Atelopus species. It's not that the frogs don't want to breed.. it's just that the female frogs don't spawn untill they reach the original water they came from. This however can be solved with giving a hormone injection- a hormone that's very difficult to obtain! I happen to know somebody who treid this with A. spumarius some years ago. It resulted in alot of tads, these were raised individually and all died. however one tad accidentally remained in the stream of his tank which did metamorphose. I've heard similar stories of German breeders, but ofcourse you can't call it breeding when there's only one that survives. I also never heard of any succes with building streams for every individual tad.
There's also a problem if not giving the hormone injection. The male and female will stay in amplexus untill the male drops dead.

But then again you are right about one reason for export. It's just useless to let them all die when the forest is cut down.

Greetings Remco

P.S. I will be trying to shoot some photos myself as soon as they come in. (if the store will let me)

There is success with breeding Atelopus now, just look at the HUNDREDS of A. zeteki the Baltimore Zoo recently had... and I've personally seen over 60 in the collection of a nearby aquarium where these animals were not only metamorphed, but raised to adulthood, and efforts are being taken to breed F2s.

IF THE ATELOPUS GET IN THE RIGHT HANDS THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO CAN BREED THEM!!!

Yes as far as I know the zoo used hormone injections. But I also know of atleast 3 breedings that was induced WITHOUT HORMONES!! If it can be done with atelopes zeteki, varius, and spumarius, as well as the peruvian greens who's scientific name excapes me (and its also in a different species complex than the before meantioned which are A. varius complex) then it there is no reason why it can't be done with the ecuadorian frogs coming in.... except the country my stats are coming from are from the US, not Europe.

I have been talking with people from the Baltimore Zoo and the other institutions who has had success with breedings of varius and spumarius which I won't name due to the projects not being public and/or completely successful, so I'm looking foreward to applying my gathered research on my Suriname A. spumarius (the hardest part was getting females). The whole bit about them breeding only in waters that they morphed in is not completely true, thats just where they tend to go back to but is not the only place they breed (I've breed spotted salamanders in captivity, and the same thing was said about them). It has more to do with cycles and pressures that get the females to release the eggs in the first place.... they won't do it with out the triggers. Given the triggers (I'm not talking about hormone triggers but environmental) the female WILL lay their eggs in water provided as long as it has the needed requirements.

If the institutions can do it, hobbiests can do, its just a matter of figuring out a technique. Poeple said years ago that pumilio couldnt be bred, the tadpoles couldn't be raised, and now look at them. Now exactly easy but it can be done. I'm working hard to make atleast A. spumarius (suriname yellows) the same.

No pictures but heres a link to a drawing (look about halfway down the page):
Atelopus ignescens

A. ignescens is considered extinct as no frogs have been sited since 1988, one of 11 species of atelopus to go extinct in that country. Not sure what species would come in but possibly A. spumarius and A. flavescens... anyone know if some of these will come into the US? I would like to know what species do come in, as I breed atelopus and would love to look into the Ecuadorian morphs and species that become available.