Poison Dart Frog (EPIPEDOBATES)
SOP Care Sheet
Enclosure
The Poison Dart Frogs that are housed at our school are of the genus Epipedobates, and from now on in this reading they will be referred to as such. Our Epipedobates are housed in a Exo-Terra Glass Terrarium size Large X-Tall, we have many tropical plants for our Epipedobates to hide in and climb on, and substrate to provide a natural habitat. A mister and a large waterfall can be used to keep humidity at the right level, which is 80 to 90 percent.
Daily Care
Amphibians have osmotic skin (meaning their skin absorbs water, as well as other liquids and chemicals), therefore if you smoke or use nicotine your hands have to be washed extremely well and gloves should be worn if you are handling them. Amphibians don't need to drink because their skin takes in water through osmosis. However, any chemicals in the water, tank, or on your hands can also be absorbed and cause harm to them or even kill them. Also, if you're wearing lotion, perfume, or hand sanitizer extreme caution should be used when taking care of them or the tank so the chemicals aren't put into the system. Daily care requires that you mist the back wall and the plants in the terrarium, spot clean the cage, provide fresh dechlorinated water and scrub off branches/plants. Make sure to avoid spraying the glass walls because the dechlorinated water leaves streaks on the glass. If you do not have dechlorinated water, regular tap water can be used if you add a drop of dechlor into the container you use. Spot clean cage daily. Do not use any type of soap or cleaner to clean the cage, plants or rocks, as any type of cleaning product could kill them as well. Wipe down the walls with a plain paper towel.
Lighting and Temperature
Our Epipedobates are diurnal frogs, meaning they are awake in the daytime hours. Our cage came with lighting, however hydroponic lights can be used to increase plant growth.
We keep our Epipedobates on a 12/12 light cycle, and their temperature range is from 72-85 degrees F (22.22-26.66 degrees C), and in general they need around 80-90 percent humidity.
SOP Feed Schedule
We feed our Epipedobates twice a day.
Generally we alternate between fruit flies and pinhead crickets. They should receive around 50-60 feeder animals. Sprinkle calcium powder on the days you feed crickets.
