Anthony’s Poison Arrow Frog

ANIMAL:
Anthony’s Poison Arrow Frog Epipedobates anthonyi

Type of Animal:
Frog

Habitat:
Forests, moist lowland areas near streams

Location(s):
SW Ecuador & NW Peru

Appearance:
Very small frog, bright reddish to dark reddish to reddish-brownish w/ green to yellowish-white striping/spotting, short/robust hind legs, females larger than males

Food/Diet:
Ants, beetles, termites, mites, flies, crickets, springtails, isopods, spiders

Status in Wild:
Stable

Conservation:
Breeding in zoos, aquariums, & herpetoculture

Lifestyle:
Groups of 3-8 frogs

Additional Info:

Called:
Male
Female
Young: Tadpole
Group: Army
 
Weight:
Male: 0.10-0.11 oz
Female: 0.2 oz
 
Gestation:
2 weeks 

Life Span:
5-8 years

Body Length:
Male: 0.7 in
Female: 1 in

Due to skin toxins, only a few snakes successfully eat them.
 
Also called Anthony’s Poison Dart Frogs.
 
Active during the day (diurnal).
 
Females lay clutches of 10-40 eggs w/ male guarding them until they hatch 2 weeks later.
 
When tadpoles hatch, male carries them to water body where they stay until metamorphosing into froglets 2 months later. They stay in froglet stage until reaching maturity at 5 months old.
 
Coloration serves as warning to potential predators.
 
Males make trilling calls & croaks.
 
Capture prey using sticky tongue.
 
Like all Poison Frogs, they have good eyesight.
 
Fights usually involve wrestling & don’t result in much injury.
 
Stable but declining due to pet trade, restricted range, pollution, & collection for medicinal use.

Fun Fact(s):
Hunters use skin toxins on darts/arrows.
 
While poisonous in wild, they lose much/all toxicity in captivity due to diet. In captivity, they’re only fed nontoxic prey items like crickets & fruit flies. In wild, they eat lots of poisonous insects.
 
Toxic nicotine-like substance Epibatidine 1st derived from & named for this species. Once investigated for possible use as analgesic agent but proved too toxic & used exclusively for research purposes.
 
Named after Harold Elmer Anthony, Curator of Mammals at American Museum of Natural History from 1926-1958.