Content
- Quick facts about the waxy tree frog
- Waxy Tree Frog Review
- How much does a waxy tree frog cost?
- General attitude and temperament
- Appearance and types
- How to Care for a Wax Tree Frog
- Habitat, tank conditions and setup.
- Tank
- the bed
- Temperature and humidity
- Lighting
- Do wax tree frogs get along with other pets?
- What to Feed Your Waxy Monkey Tree Frog
- Keeping Your Wax Tree Frog Healthy
- Breeding
- Are wax tree frogs right for you?
Waxy tree frogs are cute, portly little amphibians that like to climb and hang on a branch all day. This allows him to camouflage himself like a chameleon and go unnoticed by predators. But this feature can also make keeping them as pets a little boring if you can't afford to stay up all night to finally watch them play around in your surroundings. However, if you are more of a night owl type, wax monkey frogs may be your perfect companion!
Quick facts about the waxy tree frog
Species name. Phyllomedusa sauvagii
Family Phyllomedusidae
Level of care. Intermediate to Advanced.
temperature 75-85 F
Mood Hardy, long-lived, tender, easy to care for.
Color form. Lime green with white spots on their belly.
Lifetime 8 to 10 years.
size 3 to 4 inches.
Abstinence Carnivores, mainly insects.
Minimum tank size. 10 gallons.
Tank setup. Terrarium with plants.
compatibility Can be housed individually or in small groups of 2 to 8 animals.
Wax Tree Frog Review
The waxy tree frog is a relatively large frog native to the temperate forests of southeastern Bolivia, most of Paraguay, southern Brazil, and northern Argentina. It mainly lives in the dry forests of this region. So no, it's not an Amazonian animal, and it certainly doesn't enjoy extreme humidity.
This friendly, brown-eyed frog gets its name from a A special technique it uses to survive drought: it covers its body with a waxy substance, which greatly reduces moisture loss through the skin. This secretion is then spread over the skin by the animal using its claws.
It is one of the most spectacular and entertaining animals to observe during the day, as it remains dormant most of the time. . Be aware of this feature before buying it. Also, they are calm looking animals and relatively slow compared to other frogs.
How much does a waxy tree frog cost?
Prices vary greatly depending on the pet or pet store. Expect to cost at least $50 for a captive-bred specimen. And above all, don't make the mistake of buying your frog online because it will be impossible for you to know the sanitary conditions of your little companion.
Also, be aware that import conditions for these exotic animals are often cruel, so do your research first and only go to trusted sellers.
General attitude and temperament
Waxy tree frogs are friendly, calm and slow-moving amphibians. They are nocturnal and will be more than happy to sit on their branch all day. At night, they finally settle down to feed, stretch their limbs, and climb into their wall.
If you have to clean their tank, always move them carefully. They become stressed quickly and are therefore not suitable pets for children.
Appearance and types
These charming frogs are always lime green, with a white background stripe. This species also has white spots on its belly. Their mouths are small, almost flattened, and can reach up to 4 inches in size. The fingers are long and have suction cups, allowing them to climb branches, like small tree monkeys.
How to Care for a Wax Tree Frog
Habitat, tank conditions and setup
Tank
Wax tree frogs are quite good-sized arboreal animals. Terrariums should have a minimum volume of 25 gallons per pair (20 gallons per additional animal) and should be tall (ideally 25-30 inches high). It is quite possible to have a group of these tree frogs, provided they have the necessary space.
Terrariums should include plants that provide hiding places for animals. You can use a variety of plants tropical, as long as they are strong enough to support the frogs weight. From this point of view, a large terrarium is necessary, not only for animals but also for large-sized plants, therefore more resistant.
You can also add dead branches to the top of the terrarium to improve the environment for these climbing frogs.
A body of water is essential to collect tadpoles during the breeding season. Adults also like to take a short bath from time to time. Filtration is not necessary if you change the water periodically. Do not exceed 25% of the total area of the terrarium.
The bed
There are two types of substrate you can use for the ground portion.
Synthetic Substrate: This is a substrate made of green plastic carpet found in pet stores. This is accomplished with plastic plants or plants in pots. The advantage of this system is that it can be regularly washed and disinfected. Some even change from time to time with a kitchen towel or use pine bark.
Natural substrate: fill the ground with soil, plant some plants such as ferns or ivy. Then cover the ground with sheets of moss collected in the forest or in your garden. To prevent the soil from getting wet (there is always more runoff from the watershed), it is advisable to drain the soil below the ground. An inch of gravel will do.
Temperature and humidity
Wax tree frogs thrive in temperatures between 75-85°F. They don't tolerate high humidity, though: it should run between 40 and 60 percent, which is relatively low. Therefore, it is important to have excellent ventilation otherwise, the water area will always wet everything. The terrarium cover must also be screened.
To do this, cut four three-inch cleats in the section and glue them to the top dimension with wood glue. Then, draw this frame with a mesh with small holes. Frogs, who are good climbers, will not survive. But the terrarium will breathe, and the air will remain relatively dry. The frame can rest directly on the glass walls, or even better, on internal adhesives, all around the tank.
Always keep an eye out for possible escapes. . Remember that wax tree frogs are escape artists, so don't leave the terrarium open or even the reward.
Lighting
Wax tree frogs are primarily nocturnal. However, light during the day is essential for both animals and plants. You can either use a conventional daylight neon tube on the market (without UV) or a tube specially designed for terrariums (with UV).
Do wax tree frogs get along with other pets?
Unlike other exotic amphibians, wax tree frogs are not territorial or aggressive. You can safely keep a pair (if you want to breed them) or multiple specimens together in the same terrarium. But don't mix them with other species and be careful with your other pets. Wax frogs excrete toxins through their skin that can be harmful to other animals.
What to Feed Your Wax Monkey Tree Frog
Anything that moves and has a mouth size will be accepted: bees, mealworms, crickets, spiders, butterflies, moths, etc. You can try to find these insects in your garden (if pesticides (best to wash them if there is a risk of infection) or buy them directly from pet stores or fishing stores. You can even start raising these insects if that's your thing!
Be careful not to feed them. chitinous invertebrates (chitin is the shell of insects), such as wood or mealworms. This is because chitin is not digested very well.
More variety is ideal to avoid mistakes. The best balance is to swing between grasshoppers, crickets and insects. After a while and you gain the trust of your frog, you can try feeding them some thawed dead food - shrimp, fish, beef. At first, the process may seem difficult, but after a while it will become easier. But remember that these animals eat mostly in the evening.
Adults should be fed. Two or four times a week and a good amount given the size of these animals. Growing young should be fed daily. In addition, many breeders add a little vitamin supplement to their food. Others may think it does more harm than good. Let's just say that a moderate dose of vitamins every two weeks shouldn't hurt.
Keeping Your Wax Tree Frog Healthy
Due to a unique adaptive feature, captive wax tree frogs can suffer from a rare disease among amphibians. In fact, the fact that they like to spend most of their time under UV lamps, like chameleons, causes a major drawback for these amphibians: bladder stones .
To defend itself against dehydration, the frog will actually concentrate its urine, which ultimately saturates its urethra.
Researchers have actually established a strong link between a diet containing crickets and the development of bladder stones. Therefore, your amphibian should eat a varied diet, which is not too high in protein. You may need to take the cat's app approach, meaning they will eat the food you give them if they are hungry enough.
In summary, the trick to keeping your wax tree frogs healthy is to keep them hydrated without overmoistening. Once this routine is established, good nutrition and a pleasant environment should keep your pet healthy and happy for the next eight to ten years.
Breeding
The breeding of wax monkey tree frogs in captivity is still poorly documented, but what has been reported is consistent with the breeding of other members of the Phyllomedusidae family.
In the wild, breeding begins from October due to increased rains. In terrariums, this means spraying water two or three times a day to mimic conditions in the wild in October. You will also need to increase the frequency of feedings to allow the females to mature. Females are generally larger than males. During mating season, they develop a large black dot on the inside of the thumb.
After mating, the female lays a mass of gelatinous eggs on a sheet above the water (often the animal wraps the egg in a cone to keep it from drying out):
Eggs should be sprayed one to three times a day to prevent them from drying out.
When tadpoles hatch, they directly drop into the water. It is best to move them quickly into a small, separate aquarium, which should have water at the same temperature as their original pond (at least 77°F).
The water should be kept clean, and should be renewed once or twice a week with 50% dechlorinated water.
When the front legs appear, the tadpoles must be transferred to another terrarium where the young frogs can quickly come out of the water and rest on dry land. The entire process takes 40 to 70 days depending on water temperature and food availability.
Remember to feed the growing young. Every day and in abundance, with small prey: cut crickets, springtails, or other fruit flies.
Are wax tree frogs right for you?
Well, it depends. Waxy tree frogs come from a specific local environment that is not so easy to recreate. These are generally not for keepers of early amphibians. They are best suited for frog enthusiasts who have cared for several other frog species before.
But if you're willing to spend some extra time first to adapt to their specific needs, and don't mind watching them thrive just at night, a wax frog could be the pet of your dreams!
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