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New 12 gallon setup

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#1 ·
This is my first try at dart frogs. The temputure is staying about 70 on the bottom of the tank and about 80 at the top. The humidity is between 75 to 85. How long should the tank sit before I add frogs? I also have reverse osmosis system for my reef tanks, should I use ro water for misting and there drinking water or tap water? If ro water any additives to it? I also have a little fuzzy mold where the driftwood meets the coco bedding, I've read this will go away but should I wait for it to go away before adding frogs?


 
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#4 ·
Yeah, its A JBJ nano cube. I've added 1 small bromeliad since the picture, will get more when I can find a better place with more of a selection. I not sure if will keep ff's in yet, but if not I'll add screens to the vent hole or make a new hood. Do dart frog make a lot of noise at night?
 
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#9 ·
I didn't want to invest to much, just trying a new hobby. If I like it, I have a 48"x22"x18" tank laying around that I would like to make a nice terrarium with a waterfall or river and a shallow pond.
 
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#10 ·
more plants

Hey rxdi. I could help you out with a few nice plants for that nano cube setup. What kind of soil are you using? To give it a nice look, you might want to consider using some moss over the soil. I have all types of broms that would work well in that tank and also a nice selection of tropicals. Wouldn't cost much to send you a nice selection either since you are in CA.
 
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#11 ·
Peaceofthetropics
I have coco bedding. I sent you a email about the plants I don't think it went through, let me know if it didn't.

Will the frogs start eating right away or do they need time to adjust?

Here's a picture of my new green and black Auratus.

It's hiding behind the plant in this picture.
 
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#12 ·
e-mail

I didn't get an e-mail from you that I know of. You can PM me on here though, because I check that as much as I do my e-mail. The frog looks nice. Are you planning on getting it a mate?
 
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#14 ·
thanks

Thanks for the kind words hexen84. Your payment is in the mail. LOL!!!!! I get such positive feedback on here. I really enjoy helping you all out with great plants for your vivariums/frogs.

Just so you know, I will be offering miniature orchids soon. I am presently getting my stock built up.
 
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#15 ·
Is there some sort of drainage basin beneath the soil? If not, I would highly recommend that you put one in. A drainage basin can be as simple as an inch or two of gravel. This will work to increase humidity, and keep the soil layer from getting waterlogged. Essentially, the theory is with dart tanks that if you continuosly have water going into the system via misting, and then coming out (through siphoning off excess water in the drainage layer) you should never need to tear the tank down if it is properly set up and maintained. On an incredibly simplifed level, the plants, and microbes help keep the system healthy, and with water regularly going in and out, the system maintains an equilibrium.

After putting in the drainage layer, you can get rid of that water dish. These frogs really don't need standing water, but the gravel drainage layer will serve the same purpose as the dish, and look much more natural. Simply have an area of the gravel layer exposed, and have the gravel shallower in this area. This will create a sort of pond which can be where the excess water (a half an inch or so is acceptable to leave in there) can be drained off, and will also result in a sort of pool.

On another note, I would recommend adding more plants. They will help give your frogs a sense of security, will look great, and will work to keep the system healthy. Without heavier plant cover, I would not be surprised if your frogs simply hide underneath that grapewood, and you will rarely see them. The heavier plant cover will give the frogs the security they prefer to venture out and forage in the tank. You will see them more, and therefore enjoy them more as well.

Just a few suggestions. Good luck.

Double J
 
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#16 ·
Ken (Peaceofthetropics)
PM sent. I'll get one more in a week or two. Th guy at the store told me I could put a yellow and black one in there two, but I've read that the different types will fight?

Double J
Thanks for the all the good info.
I don't have any type of drain, I really like the your idea with leaving the gravel exposed. I have a bag of river rock(1-2"), will that work? If so I'll change it tomarrow. Do I siphon it out as it builds up? Do I need a screen between the rock and coco bedding?

Is it normal for them to sit in the water for awhile?


 
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#17 ·
rxdi said:
Double J
Thanks for the all the good info.
I don't have any type of drain, I really like the your idea with leaving the gravel exposed. I have a bag of river rock(1-2"), will that work? If so I'll change it tomarrow. Do I siphon it out as it builds up? Do I need a screen between the rock and coco bedding?
The river rock will do the trick. I use either river rock or LECA in my vivaria. Siphon the water out as it builds up. If you only have a few tanks, the easiest drainage method is to simply drain out the excess water with a turkey baster as needed. I would deifintely put some window screen, or even that cheap plastic craft grid screen in between your soil layer and the gravel. This will keep things a little cleaner for you.
And if you would like to spruce your soil up a little, put some oak or magnolia leaves from a pesticide free source. This will give the vivarium a more natural look, provide some natural fertilizer, and the leaves are a great source of tannins.
 
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#18 ·
rxdi said:
The guy at the store told me I could put a yellow and black one in there two, but I've read that the different types will fight?
Stick to one species and morph per vivarium, especially if you are new to Dendrobatids. This will make life far easier for you the keeper, and much better for the frogs. Hybridization can easily result from a number of mixes, and of course is an irresponsible practice. We need to keep the gene pools as clean as possible, as our captive breeding stock is limited as it is. As keepers it is our responsiblilty to keep these frogs as genetically similar to wild-type specimens as possible. It is more complex than that, but that is the simplest explanation
Let's not forget other problems associated with mixed species vivaria.. there are many more to list though I lack the time at the moment. I am sure others will chime in.

Now, by putting some more auratus of the same morph in the vivarium, breeding your frogs will then be a reasonable option, and is a rather enjoyable aspect of the hobby.

As for the "store"... I would shy away from their advice from now on. If you are going to put any more frogs in the tank, some more auratus of the same morph are the responsible, and more rewarding choice.

Double J
 
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#19 ·
Double J
I'll stick to the same species. Thanks again for all the helpful info.
I'm going to wait to the weekend to add the rocks, I don't want to stress the frog out since I just added it the other day. It wouldn't eat yesturday but started eating to day :p
I've read they don't come out a lot but mine spends a lot of time out in the open hopping around. Besides fruit flys and crickets, can they be fed other small bugs. I ask because there was a little nat flying around inside the cage and it ate it.
 
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#20 ·
Well I went to Home Depot and picked up some medium river rocks and window screen. I also saw that they have a large selection of Bromeliads and picked up another. I also picked up my first culture of flightless fruit flies. When I open the container a bunch flew away. Did I get a bad batch that flies?

 
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#22 ·
I'm certainly no expert on fruit flys or anything, but my understanding is that the flightless trait is recessive. So if there are flys flying around it would seem that the culture got contaminated by a regular fruit fly. Not really that big of a deal in my opinion, just more escapees when feeding.
 
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