Juvenile & Adult Poison Dart FrogsĪfter their journey back to the jungle floor, the juvenile dart frogs are ready to begin their life. Before long, they’re ready to make their journey back to the jungle floor. They grow legs and their tail disappears. Otherwise, let’s get back the life cycle.įor more reading, check out the poison dart frog’s predators.Īs time goes on, the little tadpoles metamorphose into young froglets. In short, this means that even the tadpoles of poison-dart frogs are poisonous! If you’re interested in learning more about this topic, check out the 2014 study from Ralph Saporito of John Carroll University.
You see, their mother is able to pass along the toxin through the unfertilized eggs she gives them as tadpoles. While it may be true that they’re not large enough to eat the arthropods yet, it’s not true that they aren’t poisonous. So, one might assume the tadpoles aren’t poisonous because they’re not big enough to consume the toxic arthropods that allow them to produce the poison. This is why many people keep them as pets. Without this toxic food source, they aren’t poisonous. They sequester an alkaloid‐based chemical from the food they eat in the wild. In addition to this, the mother gives her tadpoles unfertilized eggs to ensure they have enough food.ĭid you know? This interesting bit of information is closely related to the life cycle of a poison dart frog more specifically, the unfertilized eggs that the mother gives to the little tadpoles.Īs you already know, poison-arrow frogs are indeed poisonous. Over the next 6 – 8 weeks, the little tadpoles will feed on mosquito larvae and algae. Once the mother locates a suitable bromeliad, the tadpoles are placed into their own pool of water between the plant’s leaves. That’s the very reason poison-dart frogs seek these colorful plants the small pools of water serve as the perfect resting place for the tadpoles. What makes bromeliads special is that their leaves are able to hold tiny pools of rainwater. The journey will have her carrying her tadpoles to the jungle canopy in search of a bromeliad.Ī bromeliad is a tropical plant with lots of colors. They will transform from tadpoles into froglets and eventually juveniles, capable of hopping on land. She then takes her tadpoles on a long journey to a safe location where they can begin metamorphosis. Once hatched, the tadpoles wiggle their way onto their mother’s back. At which point the mother returns and the young tadpoles brace themselves for a wild ride. The father remains with the eggs until they hatch.
Typically, after a male amphibian fertilizes the eggs during amplexus, he takes off – never to be seen again. This is quite different from most species. In fact, she is most likely gone at this point.Īfter the eggs are fertilized, the male frog becomes the guardian and protector of his offspring. To be clear, this process takes place outside of the female’s body. Once the eggs are deposited, it’s up to the male to fertilize them. Once the eggs are deposited, the male dart frog takes over… Fertilization The process leading up to this is quite entertaining but I’ll cover this at the end of the page. The eggs are in a cluster and have a jelly-like sac surrounding them.Īll of this happens, of course, after the female has found a proper mate. The female will lay her eggs in a burrow or sometimes under a leaf.