MalcolmX

sorry to go slightly off topic with my example. i have read on some overseas forums about frogs and amphibians, how it is essential to brumate in order to breed some frog species. they say the frog will convert the massive fat stores into eggs and sperm only when brumating, and then when they wake up they have to eat straight away. soon after, with the right weather systems - low pressure storms which create rain and a temp change, they will breed spawn etc. in nz i think the natural distribution of our two big green frog species is governed by temprature. the southern bell frog possibly needs to have a frost to brumate then breed while the green/gold does not have to brumate at all (demonstrated by the people who have bred them in living room display tanks). and therefore can survive as a population further north. photoperiod is also mentioned on these forums especially when bringing your pet out of its sleep. http://www.frogforum.net/ http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums http://talkto.thefrog.org to name a few found by different google searches just make sure you read through through posts a bit to find the people who know what they are talking about, usually indicated by join date, number of posts, reputation. its hard to find the answers but with an open mind its all educational.

my young southern bells dont have much gold or lumps but do always have the central stripe, whitch your hybrid does not. it doesnt help that its an albino as far as identification goes, hard to see if its southern bell gold or bell gold. is it one you have breed? if so wot do mum n dad look like? if its a male it might have a hybrid croak too?! my southern bells tend to be smoother when full dry and sunbathing, and lumpiest when cold or hiding, and when darkest (almost black). have you tried it on a lighter back ground? maby its trying to go dark and thats the best it can do. im curious to see how it goes malcolm

yea i thought they liked it dark and quiet too, but one of those videos has kids tv programs on and in the other sounds like young children in the background. in 2003 a guy claimed the first tank breeding arowana, but he just got a pair from a pond who had already breed. so these guys could have just done that too. or they may be using hormones. if you bought two fish off your dealer chances are they would be siblings, then you just have to hope there a male and female.

i use straight beach sand, its very fine. i have heard of some using plain soil or dirt, which would hold the moisture well i would think. make sure you keep it moist but not soaking untill they lay, then just dont let it dry out completly over the 11 to 15 day incubation.

btw i would love to buy your tank and beautiful fish Henward but i dont have the money right now and i live in dunedin. looks like an exellent deal though.

one of the problems with the actual breeding seems to be the pairing. i have read that there are two methods. one, just put a male and female together in a tank and hope they dont rip each other to shreds getting to know each other. if your lucky they stop fighting pair up and begin courting.... two, grow a bunch (six or more) together until mature and let them pair up, then separate to own tank, condition and hope they continue courting and spawn. i havent yet really heard of much/any? success with method one and it does seem like a huge risk of loosing two beautiful fish. method two sounds like what the farmers currently use. it is this method that would aparently require at least one large pond/enclosure to house the maturing siblings. but if you look at this video(cut and past sorry, hope it works) you can see alot of small silver arowana co existing in a ralitivly small space. in this vid you can see posible courting in moderately large tank. note the fin damage on the smaller lighter fish. spawning in tank: these tanks sound like they are just sitting in peoples living rooms. how did they do it?

yea dreams are free, ill let u know in 5 years or so. but i have seen them breeding in videos on u tube! just imagine picking out your own high grade asian arowanas at a reasonable price.

does anyone in nz breed arowanas, or is there no real market?

is it swallowing the food or just getting it it into its mouth only to spit it out later? i had a golden bell do that to me at about this time of year and it looked very similar to yours. eventually it slowed right down and died.

Is it eating as much as the southens and what temp do you have it at?

the macraes mine near dunedin is right next to a protected site for Otago skinks, and they seem to do ok. Not that im for mining in all places.

How about slaters as a food source? there always easy to find in large numbers.

im sorry you feel that way but as far as im aware we are half the price of biosupplies and the casual traders on trade me. we charge 50 cents per locust and the locusts are as big and fat as i can get them to grow. most of our customers are very happy with what they recieve. doddle69 ; i would be happy to send you some adult males and females so you can start breeding. i can also provide info if needed. email to [email protected] or pm good luck malcolm (that guy from Dunedin)

Those are some beautifull animals, such vivid colours.

the lights shouuld keep them happy and active and looking their best why/how are southern bells the hardest?

yea thats exactly my initial idea exept i have about 280 litres of space spread over 3 containers, enabiling me to have close to 1000 5th instars. so plenty of storage. 220w total power 24 hours a day. the maths for calculating the cost seems complex... +power consumed by each locust from egg to eaten +time spent gathering grass +petrol +time spent house keeping for them +the initial cost for bulbs, fans, containers, polystyrene etc

i was in aukland at easter and found alot of tadpoles beside the airport, next to a golf course. they were green frogs of some sort.

i just want to pay for the power they consume and effort i put in getting grass etc. maby a little profit to keep the wife happy

retail on my part, gst inclusive. i guess the pet shop in question wants to make a profit on top of mine. i wanted to feed their animals cheeply and if anyone in Dunedin wanted a cheap supply of locusts, i would provide. a far as i know no one is selling locusts in dunedin - other than biosupplies and maby other north islanders.

what would be a fair price for large (5th instar) locusts fresh on demand? I thought $0.50 each was competative. but one pet shop recons hes getting them for $0.40 each wholesale! Dunedin only at this stage, i have a continuous supply for anyone interested. top quality in a variety of colours.

nice vid, and happy frog. whos he talking to? and how big is he?

thanx varanophile. all my southern bells seem to have fat thumbs but only some have black thumbs, is it impossible for females to have fat thumbs. i am talking about 9 frogs in one tank, some of which are defenitely male (they can croak properly), i want to induce breeding but obviously need females in the mix.

cheers ill try it

i find bright lighting really brings out the colour of golden bells, and helps a nice jungle develope for them to play in. heating helps them to be very active, but watch that you have enough food for your hot frogs. spoon how do you remove the cover glass from your halogens and do you mean 20w spots or 500w floodlights?

southern bell frogs; do only males have fat thumbs, or do do males just have black fat thumbs? also do the females have blue thighs?