Ideas on taking care of Pseudacris when very small metamorphs? Also, pics of them.

[Bill B]

I have some very tiny Pseudacris. I think they are P. crucifer, Spring Peepers, but one or more may be Pseudacris triseriata, Western Chorus Frogs. I they were in coconut fiber or moss, they would probably never be seen again... well, maybe. How about paper towel in a large plastic covered container? Would that work until they are larger?

[CheeseyDean]

I have a very tiny Hylid metamorphosing soon as well. I'd be interested in what others have to say about this.

[Lamb]

The bottom picture looks very much like P. crucifer, as does the top, but a more dorsally-oriented shot would help for the first guy. I've not seen P. triseriata recent morphs, though.

A moist paper towel should be fine. Some will suggest an unbleached paper towel, but I've never known where to find those. I look for paper towels without any dyes or patterns and I haven't had any trouble when using them. You'll have to judge when to change them based on what kinds of foods you feed and how often you feed these little guys. Give them some small pieces of bark, leaves, and or moss to hide under, and mist frequently (because the frogs are so little). If you're in a residential area, try to find cover objects farther from where people might be using pesticides or fertilizer. Another trick: put celophane or a paper towel between the tupperware and the lid (don't worry, there will be sufficient oxygen transmission through both, although do watch the temperature with either). Doing that will keep the humidity up. You can keep them in tupperware small enough to hold a sandwich, but that's about as small as I'd go (although they can survive in smaller).

Have you decided what you'll be feeding them? If you're going with fruit-flies, which, apart from termites or springtails is probably the easiest to feed with when frogs are this little, then the celophane or paper towel over the lid will help keep the flies from escaping. Your peepers will climb up and down the walls going after flies. Good luck!

[Bill B]

Something I didn't realize. Something just emailed to a friend:

"I saw something that looked just like this more than a month ago, hopping on the bottom of what was a pond bottom earlier this year in Grand Rapids' Millennium Park. It was very hot (probably over 90 degrees ), and the former pond bottom was dark, absorbing a lot of sunshine on sunny day - with little breeze. I assumed because temperature and the dry-ish looking gray color on the back that it was a Fowler's toad, and that the X on the back was coincidental. Today I saw this critter on my tank (from near my parents' cottage) that I know is a peeper... and am surprised that that was the species I saw, and nearly shocked that an early breeder like a peeper was hopping across the super-hot ground. Does the second of my statements surprise you?"