The Intermedius Vivarium

I had not expected to pick up any frogs at the International Amphibian Day show/conference.  So when I ended up coming home on Sunday night with the two tiny dendrobates intermedius, I had no place for them to live.  I needed a terrarium....and fast!

So I ran down to the pet store Monday night after work (the frogs were being kept in like a clear plastic salad bar container with some moss in the bottom of it.)  Knowing that these guys are so small, I was hoping to find a small ornamental aquarium.  And I did.  I got a tall, rectangular 4 gallon aquarium, complete with hood.

The white stuff you see on the tank is just the condensation on the inside reflecting the camera's flash.

Then I ran across the street and visited the plant store and picked up a rubbertree plant, a spider plant, some clover-looking stuff and an asparagus plant.  I already had some moss and a bromelide at home, having bought them at the conference.

Then I threw all the plants into the aquarium, placing them and their soil on the undergravel water filter shelf that came with the setup.  This shelf has slots cut into it, which will allow excess groundwater to drain through the soil into a reservoir underneath (in the future, I can remove the excess water by means of a turkey baster.)  Then I attached an undertank heating pad to raise the interior temperature.  The environment inside the new tank quickly stabilized at about 80 degrees with about 85% humidity at the bottom (less toward the top).

a view from the top

another top-down view...with frog

Then, after sprinkling the landscape liberally with fruitflies, I threw the frogs in.  They have TONS of room because they're so small.  They've spent the first couple of days exploring their new neighborhood.  And while they will occasionally blaze through the underbrush in pursuit of a fruitfly, they mostly like to hang out on the uppermost leaves or on the glass itself, high up on the tank.  So far they seem to like it.  I have no river or pool for them (arboreal frogs never come in contact with those things in nature - spending their entire lives up in the trees) so I keep the thing misted and fill the bromelide up every day. I think this will work.   Not bad for such short notice.......