![]() For Cranwell’s frogs, you can allow the humidity to drop slightly during the day without issue. A light misting in the early evening paired with the timing of heaters and lighting apparatus will help raise nighttime humidity slightly. Maintain ambient humidity at around 70 percent. While the frog might ignore it, such décor provides areas of slightly higher humidity and moisture level within the substrate underneath, giving the frog the option of a humidity gradient within the terrarium.ĭaytime temperatures are best maintained around 79 to 82 degrees Fahrenheit with a nighttime drop to around 75 degrees. Even though they prefer to burrow than to utilize hides, it is a good idea to provide some kind of hide in the form of cork bark flats or broken terra cotta pots. Horned frogs spend a large portion of their time fully or partially buried in the substrate, and they use their enlarged, spade-like metatarsal tubercle to dig down backwards with surprising speed. But you might want to leave the plants in their pots to prevent them being dug up, and to make it easier to clean the substrate. You easily can plant a display terrarium with robust houseplants, such as Chinese evergreen, Pothos/Scindapsus and temperate ferns. Provide a substrate depth of 4 to 6 inches for adults and sift it regularly to remove feces. The moisture content of this mix is adjusted easily, and adding orchid bark helps to aerate the substrate, keep the mix from going stagnant and prevent the smells associated with damp soils. My preference is a loose, free-draining substrate with a coconut-fiber base blended with a small amount of sphagnum peat moss (to slightly raise acidity) and composted fine orchid bark. Your frog’s setup can be as simple or elaborate as you wish. Vocalizations are loud and raucous, sounding almost like tortured ducks. Males carry the typical traits used to sex many amphibians, such as nuptial pads on the first digit and loose skin on the throat, indicating the presence of the vocal sac. They also have larger heads and generally a more aggressive demeanor. Ideal Horned Frog Enclosureįemale horned frogs are the most impressive in terms of size, with the possibility of attaining almost twice the body mass of a male. The albino strains also have been developed in several ways including light lemon yellows, limey green strains and some of the newer strains of albinism concentrate on bringing out the darker tints of oranges and reds. In the last few years, development culminated in the pastel and peppermint lines that show hints of blues and reduced markings. Development of green strains started early on with light green juveniles that typically darken down as they mature. Today, they are shipped worldwide in large quantities.ĭue to its popularity and large-scale propagation, the albino isn’t the only Cranwell’s color morph to have cropped up. These traits make for a more commercially viable prospect for the herpetocultural industry, and by the late 1990s, the Chacoan surpassed the ornate horned frog as the most popular tropical amphibian in the American pet trade. ![]() It is a slightly easier captive to many because it feeds well at a wider range of temperatures and humidity levels, and, from personal experience, it is a slightly easier species to breed naturally in captivity. The Cranwell’s horned frog, also known as the Chacoan horned frog, originated from the drier arid grasslands of the Gran Chaco of Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay. With the albino’s bright yellow coloration, it’s easy to see how these near-round frogs with a penchant for eating anything and everything put in front of them got them the name “Pac-Man” frog, though the name is now used collectively in reference to all horned frogs. The introduction of its albino form by Kim Thomas in 1992, however, caused Cranwell’s horned frog to really take off, and by the mid-1990s, both species were firm favorites of hobbyists. A slightly smaller species at 3 to 4 inches, and typically drabber brown in appearance, initially it was largely ignored by the trade. They live a largely fossorial lifestyle, buried away for most of the year and emerging when stimulated by the warm summer rains in order to breed explosively in shallow, temporary pools.ĭuring the late 1980s and early 1990s, the closely related Cranwell’s horned frog began to gain popularity. In nature, they can be found in the humid, subtropical Pampas of Argentina, ranging into Uruguay and Brazil. ![]() Their fleshy, horn-like projections are small, but their ornate color schemes of greens, browns, yellows and reds more than make up for it when coupled with their large size, averaging 4 to 6 inches, and aggressive feeding response. Ornate horned frogs, also known as Argentinian or Bell’s horned frogs, are stunning beasts. If it must be done, however, don’t get bitten and remember to wash your hands afterward. Handling horned frogs is not recommended.
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