Of their pure habitat, red-eyed treefrogs (Agalychnis callidryas) breed in the course of the wet season, which happens from late Could via November. Peak exercise happens in June, and infrequently there’s a second peak in October.
Picture by Eileen Underwood , Ph.D.
Purple-eyed treefrogs generally lay between 20 and 40 eggs.
In captivity, breeding may be induced at different occasions of the 12 months, but it surely appears to work finest if breeding makes an attempt coincide with strain modifications that accompany storm fronts. There’s some confusion about timing of the wet season in care sheets obtainable on the Web. Most point out that it happens from October via March, however scientific literature, in addition to local weather info for the international locations the place red-eyed treefrogs are discovered, agrees with a Could via November wet season.
Along with a simulated wet season, breeding red-eyed treefrogs require group housing. Three or extra males to 2 or extra females appear to be an optimum ratio to supply fertile eggs. After all, the frogs should be sufficiently old and within the temper. Purple-eyes seem to reply to strain fronts. One of the best ways to inform if they’re prepared is to search for a male’s dark-brown nuptial pad close to the bottom of the surface of its thumb.
Our red-eyes are maintained in comparatively dry circumstances of 30 to 50 p.c humidity. We feed them very closely for one to 3 months earlier than breeding them. Then they’re positioned right into a rain chamber, and rain falls evenly on them day by day for 3 to 4 hours round nightfall.
If they’re within the temper, amplexus is usually seen inside one to 2 days. In amplexus the male climbs on the feminine’s again and grasps her below the entrance legs. He’ll stay on this place till the feminine lays eggs. Then he deposits sperm over the eggs. For some frog species amplexus can final for a number of days, however for red-eyed treefrogs, eggs are often discovered suspended on the underside of leaves overhanging the water inside one to 2 days.
Females often deposit eggs in three to 4 clusters, and clusters can include wherever from just a few to nearly 70 eggs. The most typical vary is 20 to 40. We take away the leaf with the eggs hooked up and droop it over frog-safe water utilizing both a quart-sized glass canning jar or PVC pipe reduce in half to make a slide right into a plastic tub. Seven days later, tadpoles hatch out of their jelly coats and drop (or slide) into the water.
Tadpole Care
Tadpoles may be housed in a bunch, however watch out to not overcrowd them as a result of they are often cannibalistic. We use 5-gallon plastic tubs and home 20 to 30 tadpoles per tub. We scale back the quantity per tub because the tadpoles develop.
Twice per week, half of the water is changed with recent water. As tadpole dimension will increase, this era will increase to each different day. Tadpoles are fed day by day utilizing high-quality tropical fish meals, corresponding to Sera Micron, brine shrimp flakes or TetraMin’s The Wealthy Combine. We provide sufficient meals to be consumed inside 10 minutes.
Tadpoles develop at totally different charges, however the first rear legs seem in about 30 days, and entrance legs begin showing in about 36 days. As soon as tadpoles have produced legs, they cease consuming till they’ve reabsorbed their tail fully. As quickly as they’ve entrance legs, froglets climb out of the water — even earlier than the tail is gone.
As soon as their tails are fully reabsorbed, froglets may be supplied flightless fruit flies or small crickets, and they are often housed just like the adults however in smaller tanks.
