Home | Reptile and Amphibian Health | feeding and diet (page 12)

Category Archives: feeding and diet

Feed Subscription

Recent Field Research – Reptile and Amphibian Feeding Observations

Eastern Hognos SnakeMany interesting field research reports are published in professional journals such as Copeia, Herpetologica and Herpetological Review, and are not available on the internet.  From time to time I’ll provide summaries of some of the fascinating articles that I come across.  Today’s report, drawn from Autumn, 2010 publications, covers observations of free-living snakes, turtles and caimans.

Giant Meals…even for snakes!

Snakes are “big meal specialists”, but rarely consume animals larger than themselves.  However, a Southern Toad and a Spadefoot Toad, swallowed by different Eastern Hog-nosed Snakes, Heterodon platyrinos, each outweighed the snake by several grams!  Read More »

Do Your Frogs or Toads Have Trouble Catching Insects?

Wyoming ToadI’ve recently observed several frogs and toads to develop difficulties in feeding (American Bullfrogs, Gray Treefrogs, Southern Leopard and Green Frogs; several readers have written to me concerning difficulties with American Toads).  It starts with what looks like “bad aim” and progresses to the point where the frogs cannot catch insects at all and must be force-fed.  I’ve looked into the problem and found that a Vitamin A deficiency, leading to Short Tongue Syndrome, may be involved (please see this article by Dr. Kevin Wright of the Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital for details).  I’d like to request that readers send me their own observations, so that we can learn more about this serious amphibian health problem. Read More »

A Frog First – the Fang-Bearing Tadpoles of the Vampire Flying Frog

Rhacophorus malabaricusThe year 2011 has barely begun, but it is already supplying amphibian enthusiasts with exciting news items.  One of the most surprising is the discovery that the tadpoles of the newly-described Vampire Flying Frog, Rhacophorus vampyrus, sport hard, sharp fangs…a previously unknown amphibian adaptation.

A Surprise in the Treetops

Biologists from Australia, Vietnam and the USA (North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences) uncovered the new frog and its odd tadpoles while surveying montane forest canopies on the Langbian Plateau in southern Vietnam.  Their findings, published in the journal Zootaxa (please see article below), have left herpetologists wondering just why tadpoles might need such odd mouthparts…certainly not to puncture veins, as their common name suggests! Read More »

Vitamin and Mineral Supplementation for Aquatic Frogs, Turtles & Newts – Part 2

Clawed Frog PairIn Part 1 of this article we discussed vitamin/mineral supplements for aquatic animals that accept prepared/non-living foods; included among these are African Clawed Frogs, Sharp-Ribbed and many other newts, and most water-dwelling turtles.

Live Prey Specialists

Animals that take live prey only are especially troublesome when it comes to supplementation, as one cannot coat live aquatic food animals with powders.  Popular live food specialists include Dwarf African Clawed Frogs, Mata Mata Turtles, Surinam Toads, Mudpuppies and the larvae of most salamanders.  Read More »

Vitamin and Mineral Supplementation for Aquatic Frogs, Turtles & Newts – Part 1

Pipa PipaHello, Frank Indiviglio here.  Powdered vitamin and mineral supplements for reptiles and amphibians have been a great boon to herp keepers.  However, African Clawed Frogs, Red-Eared Sliders, Axolotls and other creatures that feed only in water present special challenges, as the supplements wash away before being consumed.  Today we’ll look at some ways around this problem. Read More »

Scroll To Top