My 1st vivarium which will house a D. auratus. Here on Oahu, we have a population of PDF in Manoa Valley. This vivarium will be setup w/ bromeliads to provide shelter, water source and a proper humidity level for these amphibians.
Setup
Tank: 12"x12"x18" ExoTerra terrarium
Lighting: 12" Finnex Planted + LED
Substrate: Hydroballs/Substrate Mesh/ EcoEarth
Hard scape: cork tile background/2 cork bark pieces
Bromeliads: Neoregelia 'Fireball x lilliputiana'
Neoregelia 'Red Waif'
Neoregelia 'Wild Tiger'
Neoregelia 'Domino'
Neoregelia 'Popoki'
Cryptanthus 'variegata' (2)
Tillandsia ionantha (3)
Tillandsia bartramii (3)
Neos & Crypts placed on cork or coco fiber. Neos have orchid bark mounds @ the base
Tillies superglued to cork
ExoTerra terrarium lid covered w/clear cellophane (maintain humidity)
Illumination sked: @ 6am; 5hr on/6hr off/5hr on/8hr off (linked to my planted tanks sked).
While researching mini Neos, made contact with a noted local bromeliad hybridizer who supplied both plants & valuable nursery techniques for these epiphytes. Acquired a sizable collection of mini Neos which will be included in "Living Wall" project on my patio. When the pups are finally placed in their planter pockets, will post pics of this Brom collection.
@BeastMaster, nice project! I have one of these as well but I was using them for carnivorous plants. My family is from Aiea/Pearl City and I didnt' know there was a PDF population in Manoa Valley. PM some details? Next time I'm home I've gotta check it out!
@BeastMaster, nice project! I have one of these as well but I was using them for carnivorous plants. My family is from Aiea/Pearl City and I didnt' know there was a PDF population in Manoa Valley. PM some details? Next time I'm home I've gotta check it out!
Yeah, kind of a different take on the Broms. Wanted it to look like they're attached to pieces of fallen branch. Went out today and caught some springtails & isopods (6-9 of each). Thanks for looking.
The backdrop was so simple. Cork tile was precut to tank size so just "plug & play"! The isopods look like the "dwarf white" variety but not too sure. Will be posting a YouTube video of the collecting process.
Plan to do a video of the collecting trip but will be careful not to reveal location. Just want to show the typical kind of microenvironment that auratus tends to favor. Hopefully this can assist others with options when trying to model habitats.
Funny thing happened on the way to do a YouTube video on habitats that PDFs (poison dart frog) favor in Manoa Valley yesterday. While setting up the views at the 1st site, I almost stepped on 2 frogs! Captured one of them and tried to do an isolated shot w/ him/her but too active. Ended up taking it home for the vivarium. It spent the day getting used to the various hiding spots under the bromeliads. This morning was out and about. I dropped in 20-30 wingless fruit flies & it was eating! GF named it "Dixon".
:bounce:
Check out the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODlhFIY2OHo
Close-up
So you were only able to catch one? Bummer! You might want to put a water dish in there for them to rehydrate in case the lights make the environment a bit dry.
How many do you plan to stock in there in the long run?
As these species are 'poisonous' due to their Amazonian ant diet, I'm guessing you captured these guys by hand with no irritation?
Just wanted it for a specimen shot @ the 1st site so only needed one.
The Neo Brom cups are always topped off so, water is always available (plus droplets on the leaf litter when misting daily).
The vivarium is only projected for a single animal & yes, caught gingerly by hand w/o irritation.
At work we have tinctorius that are quite large & pumilio that are minute. This auratus is somewhere in the middle. I don't want to stress out my little guy to measure but when I finish the YouTube video, I'll try to address the size question for auratus.
Found this during ff feeding today! It's a Neo 'Popoki' pup.
My auratus is adapting really well to captivity. During lighted periods it's out & about hunting. The vivarium is positioned at my front door were there's lots of foot traffic. "Dixon" is a very photogenic PDF.
"Dixon" decided to do some mods to Brom City. It trampled an T bartramii in the foreground so, removed it and started looking for a replacement. Found a T bulbosa that I decided to attach to the cork background.
All this talk about Oahu reminded me of some of my favorite places and restaurants (courtesy of time in the military). Anna Millers at Pearl City is one of them. Awesome breakfasts (@Tihsho it's your fault for this reminiscence, since you mentioned Aiea).
All this talk about Oahu reminded me of some of my favorite places and restaurants (courtesy of time in the military). Anna Millers at Pearl City is one of them. Awesome breakfasts (@Tihsho it's your fault for this reminiscence, since you mentioned Aiea).
Aloha Daisy. I go to Anna Millers 2x a month for breakfast. Downstairs is good too. Love the garlic knots @ Bravos.
"Dixon" says thanks for the compliment.
:bounce:
Added more tillies! Moved the lower bartramii to center, placed a 2nd bulbosa in it's place & added 2 new vanhyningii, one on each cork piece. Increases Brom count to sixteen!
Aloha, time for an update. Got bit by the mini orchid bug. Thanks to meowschwitz & some dendroboard members, add some Pleurothallids to the vivarium.
Placed some of the orchid cuttings on "pillbugs" attached to the left & right glass sides, removed the T bulbosa & T bartramii & replaced w/ Masdevallia species (pygmaea, erinacea, discoidea & bucculenta). The pillbug specimens were strapped in w/ the cotton thread that came with kits while the Masdevallia were superglued into place and the bases wrapped loosely with sphagnum moss.
"Dixon" was spooked by the landscaping last nite but was back to normal this morning with the ff feeding.
:bounce:
1st change was providing forced air ventilation. Constructed a plenum of black corrugated plastic & electrical tape. The 1" thick X 10" wide X 18.5" tall box is powered by a 80mm low speed fan that provides gentle air flow along the top of the cork tile background. A slit was cut into the cellophane liner that originally sealed the wire screen top.
2nd change was replacing the two cork flats the were used to terrace the floor w/ a couple of cork rounds. Actually one cork round tube (from a neighborhood Petco) & a cork "knee" that was found a LFS (Aquascapes).
Instead of placing the cork directly on the graded slope coco fiber, I put down a thin layer of New Zealand orchid bark before positioning the cork pieces and then partially filled the cork cavities with the same bark. The remaining space in the cavities is topped off w/ sphagnum moss. The vivarium floor is finished off w/ layer of dried monkeypod leaves.
Kept the Neo "Red Waif" & Neo "Fireball X lilliputiana" both w/ pups & added a N dungsiana. Added a Pleurothallis luctuosa in the cork "knee" & Platystele reflexa in the top of the cork tube. Also placed a small division of Barbosella cuculiata midway down the tube. Placed a division of Zootrophion atropurpurea on the top left & Trichosalpinx sp. in the top middle of the cork tile background.
Returned "Dixon" into the refurbished diggs and immediately HE set out exploring the new territory (have heard him vocalizing). He has also burrowed out a small nook in a space between the the top of the "knee" cavity and the top of the sphagnum moss filling.
Update:
Installed an ExoTerra Monsoon Solo mister for more frequent & constant humidity/moisture control.
Moved the N. dungsiana down the cork tube on the right. Placed a Neo "Tiger Prawn" in between the cork tube & the cork knee.
Added a P. prolifera behind the knee on the cork tile background, a P. sp#5 in the knee, Restripia enchinacea @ the top of the tube, Ophipdion pleurothallopis just in front of that and Dreydella cristata just below the dungsiana.
Another layer of new monkeypod leaf litter to give "Dixon" some new flooring.
Plants are looking nice and healthy! The Solo mister is a nice addition. Your set-up has definitely gained stamina (started in 2015?). Any recent pics of your D. auratus?
Very cool setup, but is it legal to keep darts in Hawaii? I've heard that it's illegal to own any exotic species, and that capturing a day gecko to keep is prohibited
Before I started the vivarium, researched the topic & contacted our State Agriculture Dept. Not violating any laws if the animal is kept in a private collection. The animal must not be released back into the environment because it is an invasive species, the animal can not be transported to the outer islands or exported out of state.
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