Detailed Information About the African Dwarf Aquarium Frog

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Brief Overview

Dwarf African Frogs are an absolute favorite for freshwater hobbyists. Being an amphibious species, and most often seen on the ground, people are often tickled when they find out that the African Dwarf Frog can live its life wholly submerged. They obviously do not have gills, so you will occasionally see them rise to the surface for some air. It is best to get a few Dwarf Frogs if you have a large tank as they tend to hide a lot and you may rarely see them. African Dwarf frogs should be kept away from aggressive fish and fin nippers like Gouramis, or Oscar Cichlids. Your Oscar is likely to see it as a piece of food eventually. Some quality tank mates for the African Dwarf Aquarium Frog would be Guppies, Albino Corydora, or Black or Blue Neon Tetra. Fish and Frog seem for the most part to stay out of eachothers way. As long as your fish are not large enough to eat the frog you should be fine.

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Detailed Wikipedia Information

Dwarf African Frogs can be found all around the African continent spreading from tropical to subtropical Africa but the vast majority of them are from the Congo area. The African dwarf frog is an aquatic animal living its life entirely underwater, but needs to rise to the surface to breathe atmospheric air because they have lungs and not gills. They are fairly small in size and don't weigh more than a few ounces. They vary slightly in color but for most part they are earth toned. These frogs' life expectancy can range anywhere from 5 to 15 years.

Behavior

Dwarf African Frogs are very active and very rarely will they sit still for any period of time, except when they are lazy and want to not move as much to get air. Sometimes they will just float there with arms and legs spread out. They prefer to spend time in the shallow rivers, creeks, and ponds in the African forest. Here they can move around unrestricted and not have to worry about how deep they go, as they need to surface for air. African dwarf frogs are generally peaceful with animals of their own size but their diet sometimes includes smaller animals. Other fish are known to find frog eggs as a tasty treat. African dwarf frogs spend most of their time eating or playing near the bottom, where they feel safe from predators and to keep cool in the African heat. These frogs find a safe hiding place near the bottom to sleep. They do this a lot; most frogs will sleep up to twelve hours a day.

Sexing

Dwarf African Frog Males are slim and will develop a small gland behind each of their front legs; this gland is not understood very well but is believed to play some part in mating. Males are the ones known to "sing" or "hum" during mating or when excited. Only males are known to do this, although they will sometimes "hum" even if there is no intention of mating. The females of this species are 20% larger than males when fully mature. They have pear-shaped bodies as their stomachs will fill with eggs as they reach a mating stage. Another distinction is that females will have slightly larger tails than males.

Mating

Dwarf African Frogs mate during what is called amplexus. In amplexus, the male grabs the female around the abdomen just in front of her back legs. Amplexus usually happens at night after one or more nights of "humming" by the male. During amplexus, the female does all the swimming. The female lays her eggs on the surface of the water, one at a time while towing the male. She will swim to the bottom between layings. The male is fertilizing the eggs during this time by releasing sperm into the water. Amplexus can last for several hours. When the female has laid all her eggs she signals the male to release her by going motionless. After several minutes of being motionless the male will release the female and she will return to her normal behavior.

Size

The African dwarf frog can range in size but most commonly are found to be 1 inch to 1.5 inches long; though on rare occasion there have been some that have grown up to 4-5 inches. The females are larger than the males by about 20 percent. Males usually weigh about 60 grams and females can weigh up to 200 grams. The large difference in size and weight is largely due in part to the females carrying hundreds of eggs in her abdomen.

Food and diet

African dwarf frogs do not have teeth because they do not chew their food, they swallow it whole. Favorite foods include blood worms, water fleas, and shrimp, although these frogs will also eat mosquito larvae, black worms, small fish, and small earthworms. And on rare occasions you will see these frogs eating water snails and brittle shells. African dwarf frogs are bottom-feeders and one will rarely see them eat anything from the surface of the water.

Community

African dwarf frogs love other frogs. They have been know to live in heavily populated areas and one will rarely find an African dwarf frog living secluded by itself out in the wild. Males will make the same "humming" sound when excited as when mating. Since they are not over aggressive animals they fit well with each other, though there has been sighting of hostile individuals that intimidate others.

African dwarf frogs as pets

African dwarf frogs are commonly found as pets. They first became popular as pets in the 1960s and have spread to the pet trade all over the world. African Dwarf frogs make great pets because they are low maintenance. They should be fed at least 5 times a week and their water should be changed once every two weeks or so. These frogs are also very cheap and they can be found very easily at pet stores. Be careful when buying them as some people have accidently been given an African Clawed Frog, ACF, instead. As in the wild African dwarf frogs can live with other animals. They can live with several other frogs. African dwarf frogs are most compatible with bottom feeders and algae eaters. This is because other tropical fish can be too aggressive and fight with the frogs. Additionally the frogs are not quick eaters and the fish can eat all the food while the frogs go hungry. Tanks should be filled up with regular room temperature tap water and be lined on the bottom with smooth rocks or sand. The reason for this is that these frogs have sensitive skin and spend a lot of time on the bottom, where rough rocks or pebbles could irritate the skin and cause discomfort. Stacked or large objects in the tank should be secure since African dwarf frogs are very active and could accidentally knock them over. A good rule to follow is three frogs to every five gallons of tank. The smallest size tank that one should use is one gallon. Feeding is similar to how African dwarf frogs eat in the wild. African frogs do not feed well on fish flakes, this is a common mistake. African dwarf frogs love dried blood worms (which is what most betta fish eat), or cut up earthworms. African dwarf frogs should not be placed in a tank with a light that is on for more than twelve hours a day as they are very cyclical animals.

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