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Has anyone tried keeping any day geckos with mantellas?
I've got a 2 ft tall x 3 ft long x 1 ft deep tank that I'm considering making into a Madagascar enclosure, probably with a 1.2 trio of day geckos, right now I'm leaning towards Peacock Days (Phelsuma quadriocellata) and a 1.2 trio of painted mantellas (Mantella madagascarensis) along with a lot of moss and plants and a small shallow pool.
The temperature and humidity requirements work, with the exception of the basking spot for the Phelsumas. The day geckos are of course mainly arboreal and i've read that mantellas tend to stay near the ground, so I think there shouldn't be too much problem in that regard. Any ideas/comments/suggestions would be greatly appreciated though.

I would recommend avoiding that combination. Although I haven't kept P. quadriocellata, I have kept P. dubia which is a similar size. My dubia had no problem taking down crickets that were as large as my male painted mantellas, and I think it would be risky to keep the two species together. It can also be difficult to create the proper temperature gradients for both species, with Phelsuma needing a warm basking area and painted mantella frogs needing to be kept cool. In my opinion, just stick to the geckos and do not get the frogs.
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Devin Edmonds
devin@amphibiancare.com
www.amphibiancare.com

I keep my gold dust day gecko with my darts in a 65 gal terrarium and have had no problems. I sometimes even see them hunting together. They are similar size though, so there's not problem with either eating each other.
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1.0 Picasso panther chameleon (Pablo)
1.0 D. Tinctorius (Cobalt V.)
0.1.1 D. Auratus
0.0.1 Golddust Day Gecko

I see what your saying, Devin, but for one thing, the two coexist in Madagascar, and mantellas are toxic. So in terms of frogs getting eaten, its a matter of how the wild geckos know not to eat them, if its visually, like by coloration, then there shouldn't be any problem in captivity, if the geckos can detect the alkaloid toxins in the frog somehow, either by spitting the frogs out if they taste them (most alkaloids are bitter, they could spit out anything tasting bitter) or smelling them. I'm not sure that anyone has conducted any experiments to try to figure this out, and I'm not sure, though if I had to guess I would guess that wild geckos simply avoid the bright coloration.
However, captive mantellas wouldn't have the alkaloid skin toxins since they won't be feeding on the same toxic prey, therefore if the geckos can detect the lack of alkaloids, there is a risk of the gecko going for a mantella meal. I do agree that smaller mantellas could be eaten by a P. quadriocellata, P. dubia is a little bit bigger than P. quadriocellata, and I personally think that a 5 inch lizard (Snout-Tail) isn't likely to try to eat a 1 inch frog unless its really hungry, and there's nothing easier around.
Also, addressing the temperature concern, I remember reading that mantellas tend to stay more towards the ground is that correct? well if a heat lamp in a corner of the top provides the basking spot for the P. quadriocellata, its unlikely that the frogs would have a problem with that. In addition, I know someone who has been doing some research on Mantellas in Madagascar, and she has kept captive mantellas successfully at 80-85 degrees, which is a little high according to most literature, but I still don't see the temperature being a huge issue.

Do what you will and let us know how it turns out. It could work well, but understand that there are a reasonable amount of risks involved. I don’t know that the geckos will attempt to eat the frogs either, they might avoid them because of their coloration, it’s just a problem that first came to mind when I read your message. In regards to temperature, not all species of Mantella can be kept in the same temperature range. Those from cooler climates, like madagascariensis, do best when kept no warmer than the high 70’s. Other species from lower altitudes and warmer regions on Madagascar can tolerate temperatures into the 80’s on a regular basis.

In addition to the potential problems I mentioned in my other post, there are also ethical considerations. Nearly all mantella frogs available at this time are wild-caught. They are not established in captivity the way that dart frogs are. In my opinion, those who choose to keep mantella frogs should put an emphasis on trying to breed them, rather than using them for display purposes. Keeping mantella frogs with another species only increases the number of possible problems that could occur and will likely limit their chances of breeding.
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Devin Edmonds
devin@amphibiancare.com
www.amphibiancare.com