Strawberry poison dart frog
Strawberry poison dart frogs are fragile dart frog species as compared to other frogs. Like all other dart frogs, they are very colorful species having a very beautiful symmetry. These frogs have bilateral symmetry which means that the patterns they possess are in symmetry.
The patterns and colors of this frog species are the most diverse ones. The color range can vary red, blue, green, yellow, orange, and black. They have flat feet with a webbed structure on each of the feet.
Strawberry poison dart frog facts
Like different dart frogs, strawberry poison dart frogs have several beautiful facts, which you may not know about them:
- Strawberry poison dart frogs live in rainforests mainly in dense vegetations.
- Strawberry poison dart frogs, unlike other frogs, do not prefer to just stay on the ground rather they like to jump on several leaves, trees, and vines.
- Females lay eggs on the terrestrial area however each of the females carries the tadpoles to a separate water body to nurture them more.
- That means strawberry poison dart frogs require a terrestrial setup and water-filled plants for successful reproduction.
- These frogs are very small-sized and even when they are fully grown as adults they are just the size of seventeen to twenty-four millimeters.
- Dart frogs usually have dark-colored eyes placed on either side of the head.
- As they live in humid environments the skin of the dart frogs is very shiny and glossy.
- The tadpoles mainly eat the mosquitoes larvae and they even eat other tadpoles as well.
- The alkaline secretions which are produced by their skin are fatal.
- The bright and vibrant colored species of several frogs including the strawberry poison dart frogs is one of the identifications of the toxic species.
- Most of the care of the young ones including eggs and the tadpoles is done by the male frog.
- The male watches for the mass of eggs so that they are safe. When the tadpoles sprout from the eggs the male carries them on their backs to another water body where they complete their developmental process.
Strawberry poison dart frog size
These bright color species of the poison dart frogs are small-sized and they do not grow much. The adult frog can grow up to about seventeen to twenty-two millimeters in length.
It has been found that male dart frogs are better survivors and are more successful regarding a safe place. The females are slightly larger in size than the males. The bodies of the males are slimmer as well.
Strawberry poison dart frogs scientific name
Present in Central America, these poison dart frogs are very small-sized, brightly colored, poisonous frog species. They mainly inhabit the countries of Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama.
The scientific name of the strawberry poison dart frog is ” Oophaga pumilio”. These frogs belong to the family Dendrobatidae.
Strawberry poison dart frog diet
Strawberry poison dart frogs use a wide variety of food capturing techniques which mainly include catching the insects by their disc-shaped tongue. The prime diet of the strawberry poison dart frogs wild ants. These ants are responsible for the poison that they have in their skin. They also eat a variety of small arthropods and mites.
Strawberry poison dart frog lifespan
The lifespan of the strawberry poison dart frogs is blunt and unpredictable. However, according to scientific studies in the wild, the poison dart frogs can live for three years.
Whereas, in captivity, they live for extended periods of time. According to a report, a strawberry poison dart frog can live for almost twenty-five years.
Strawberry poison dart frog predators
Strawberry poison dart frog do not have a lot of predators. Why? Because they are very poisonous and due to their toxicity they paralyze or make their predators numb.
The only predator that has been successful in predating them is Leimadophis Epinephelus, which is a snake species. This snake species is even more poisonous than the frog species. These snake species are resistant to frog’s venom.
Strawberry poison dart frog care
Strawberry poison dart frogs (Oophaga pumilio) love to live in a humid terrarium. Therefore, it is recommended to spray them with reverse osmosis water almost four times a day.
However, it is only recommended to use RO only when it contains enough mineral salts. The temperature range for this species of frog is twenty-three to twenty-four centigrades. These frogs cannot survive below nineteen-degree centigrades and not more than twenty-six centigrades.
The humidity level for this frog species should always be eighty percent. This is the reason why you have to spray them four times a day.
Where does the strawberry frog poison dart frog live?
The strawberry poison dart frog live in the states of Central and South America. They also inhabit the Hawaiian Islands. This species prefers to live in a humid aquarium. Any ten-gallon tank, with a soft substrate and bioactive plants, are best.
The plants and the moss vegetation does not only provide humidity and water source but they also provide shelter to the frogs. Because these frogs love to seek shelters.
Can strawberry poison dart frog kill you?
Strawberry poison dart frog have poison secreting skin. The toxins they produce are not known to be fatal for humans. However, the poison can cause serious allergic reactions to human skin.
Moreover, if you have any open wound through which the poison can travel to the body then it may prove fatal to humans. African and American tribes have been using their poison at darts to kill their prey.
What happens if you touch a strawberry poison dart frog?
The poison of the frog is present in their skin. Therefore they are too dangerous to touch. Most of the dart frog species are considered to be toxic however not fatal. But, the predators of the strawberry poison dart frogs can become dead, paralyze, or numb if they try to eat these frogs.