Aquarium Frog Care

Two types of common aquarium frog exist: the African dwarf (genus Hymenochirus) and the African clawed (genus Xenopus). Their care is similar, but you can't keep them together. Hymenochirus typically stay under 1 1/2 inches long, while Xenopus may grow to five times that size. Adult clawed frogs have claws on front and back digits, and their hands aren't webbed. Adult dwarf frogs have claws on the back feet only, and have webbed hands. Xenopus are illegal in some states.

  1. Companions or Lunch?

    • Frog tanks should be frogs-only, and dwarf and clawed frogs must be segregated because adult clawed frogs eat dwarf frogs. Some claim it's possible to keep frogs in community tanks, and they're often displayed this way, but in the long run mixing fish and frogs is dangerous to both. Even if they can't get a whole frog in their mouths, many fish will constantly try to eat your frog's limbs. Frogs also frequently starve to death in community tanks because they're very slow feeders and are easily robbed of their food by all types of fish. Meanwhile, frogs tend to nip at fins and appendages, and can eat or otherwise kill small or slender fish.

    Water and Tank

    • African frogs never crawl onto land, but they must nonetheless reach the surface to breathe. They need water no deeper than 12 inches. Water should be treated with a conditioner that removes chlorine and chloramine and has a "slime coat," and changed every two to four weeks with a gravel vacuum. Your filter should be a fully enclosed, submersible canister with very low current. Water temperature should hover around 75 degrees. Provide eight to 14 hours of light daily with a regular low-wattage aquarium bulb. Use a tight-fitting screen lid.

    Accessories

    • Frog tanks need 3 to 4 inches of smooth gravel that's large enough that the frogs can't fit it in their mouths but small enough that they can dig among it while foraging for food. Frogs should have moderately heavy, live, floating plant cover -- anacharis is ideal. They may hide in or hang on smooth-surfaced tank furniture such as African root. Avoid anything with sharp edges.

    Food

    • Aquarium frogs typically need live, whole prey. Packaged pellets are available, but very few frogs will eat them and they can cause intestinal obstruction. Clawed frogs eat a wider variety of food than dwarf frogs; you may be able to include frozen fish food cubes and chunks of fish or shrimp in their diet. Dwarf frogs typically only eat small, wiggly things such as blood-, black- or tubifex worms, which are ideal because they take up residence in your gravel, they form a nearly complete ecosystem, and they improve water quality. Once the worms are established, the frogs eat them at their leisure and you'll only rarely need to add more. Until then, when you add food you must make sure you actually see your frogs eat at least every other day. You'll know the worms are established when they look like a field of dark grass growing out of your gravel. When you do water changes, filter captured ones in a net and replace them in the tank. Small dwarf frogs can eat daphnia; as they grow they'll enjoy brine shrimp as a treat, but too many brine shrimp can clog your filter and harm your water quality.