Tomato Frog

Scientific Name

The scientific name of Tomato Frog are Dyscophus antongilli, D. guineti and D. insularis.

Tomato frog has orange to red back, a yellowish underside and sometimes have black spots on the throat.
The bright colors serve as a warning mechanism. While not toxic, it give off a yucky, sticky white mucus which is irritating to mucous membranes & serve to ward off predators.
The frog can inflate body when disturbed.
Dyscophus antongilli is endangered in its native country as a result of deforestation and over-collecting for the pet trade.
This types of Tomato frogs is protected under CITES Appendix I and are ILLEGAL in trade!
Two other species of tomato frogs in Madagascar, D. guineti and D. insularis, neither of which are presently endangered.

Insectivorous (insects-eating); crickets, moths, flies, grasshoppers, etc also worms and fishes.
Remove all the remaining insects because they (specially crickets) will disturb the frog at night, resulting in unnecessary stress.
All food items should not be larger than 1/3 of the size of its head.

Terrestrial; lowlands, swamps and shallow pools.
They live well in temperatures from 64°F, and up to 80°F.
Container should be large enough but does not need to be high because they do not leap or climb high.
A large water bowl should be available all the time.
It need a soft substrate to burrow into.
If they start to turn an icky brown color, it’s a sign of an unhappy frog.
Ideally should have about 6 cm of a damp but not an overly-wet base substrate mixture for the frog to dig into.
This substrate can consist of pre-sterilized chopped oak and maple leaves, sphagnum moss & river sand, or you can go for some regular potting soil as long as it doesn’t contain any chemicals.
You can put a few large pieces of cork bark or bogwood on top and add a shallow water pan towards one corner.
You should mist the vivaria once or twice daily with dechlorinated or stale water to retain moisture in the substrate.