AmphibianTerrestrialIntermediate
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Strawberry Poison-dart Frog "Bri Bri"
Oophaga pumilio "Bri Bri"
Native to the Talamanca region, this large pumilio morph features bright red or orange colors with distinctive dark speckling. It is bold, active, and requires dense vertical planting.
- Taxonomy
- Class:AmphibiaOrder:AnuraFamily:DendrobatidaeSubfamily:DendrobatinaeGenus:OophagaSpecies:Oophaga pumilio "Bri Bri"
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Environment
Terrestrial
Humidity
80 - 100 %
Day temperature
22 - 26 °C
Night temperature
19 - 21 °C
UVB
None
Species description
Morph/Variant Note: Bri Bri local variant. A distinct mainland morph named after the Bribri region, exhibiting orange-red coloration.
Geographical Origin and Habitat: Found near the Costa Rica-Panama border region (Bribri), inhabiting lowland tropical forests, cacao plantations, and secondary growth. They rely on bromeliads for breeding.
Taxonomy and Genetics: Family Dendrobatidae. Oophaga pumilio (the Strawberry Poison Frog) is highly polymorphic, with over 30 distinct island and mainland morphs.
Behavior and Habits: Diurnal and territorial. Males defend calling sites on broad leaves. Females perform intensive parental care, transporting tadpoles to individual water-filled bromeliad leaf axils and feeding them with unfertilized food eggs.
Morphology: Tiny size (1.8-2.5 cm). Orange-red dorsum with contrasting dark metallic legs. Dimorphism is subtle; males have a dark, expandable vocal sac under the throat.
Care, breeding and tankmates
Terrarium Setup: Vertical tropical terrarium (minimum 45x45x60 cm). Plant heavily with live bromeliads (Neoregelia), climbing vines, and damp moss. Bromeliad leaf axils are critical for breeding and tadpole rearing.
Lighting and Heating: Daytime temperatures of 24-27°C. Avoid overheating above 28°C. Night drop to 22-23°C. Excellent lighting is needed for plant growth, plus low UVB (5%).
Humidity and Hydration: Extremely high humidity (85-100%). Install an automatic misting system. Ensure bromeliad cups are constantly filled with clean, dechlorinated water.
Feeding and Supplementation: Strictly micro-insectivorous. Feed springtails and flightless fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster). Dust prey with calcium, vitamin A, and D3 at every feeding.
Compatibility: Best housed in single pairs or small harems. Males are highly territorial and will wrestle; avoid cohabitation of multiple males. Do not mix with other species.
Health and Common Diseases: Highly delicate. Never handle with bare hands. Require a constant food supply; cannot survive even 48 hours without food due to fast metabolism.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Found near the Costa Rica-Panama border region (Bribri), inhabiting lowland tropical forests, cacao plantations, and secondary growth. They rely on bromeliads for breeding.
Origin
Selective breeding and cultivarsCentral America and Caribbean
Amphibian profile
- Diet
- Insectivore
- Their natural diet consists of highly specialized micro-invertebrates like mites and ants, but in captivity, they thrive on a diet of flightless fruit flies and springtails. Because of their incredibly small size, they require the smallest available prey items. Frequent, daily feedings are necessary due to their fast metabolisms. All feeder insects must be dusted with vitamin supplements to maintain their vibrant health.
- Life expectancy
- 10-17 years
- The catalog uses 10–17 years as its concise reference range. AmphiBIO v1 instead reports a documented maximum longevity of 7.5 years for the species. An observed maximum is not the same as a typical expectation: specimen origin, sample size and husbandry conditions can explain differences among sources, so this figure should be read as a recorded limit rather than a promise of survival.
- Adult size
- 2.5 cm
- The catalog's scalar value is 2.5 cm. The AmphiBIO v1 source reports a maximum adult measurement of 2.5 cm for this species, recorded as snout–vent length (SVL). These figures are not interchangeable: the first is the profile's editorial reference, whereas the second is a published maximum under a specific measurement convention; differences among sources can reflect sex, population, life stage and measuring method.
- Lifestyle/Microhabitat
- Terrestrial
- They are predominantly arboreal compared to other small dart frogs, heavily utilizing the vertical space. A terrarium dense with bromeliads is an absolute requirement for them to thrive and breed. They spend substantial time perched on leaves surveying their surroundings for food and rivals. High humidity and stable tropical temperatures must be maintained constantly.
- Activity cycle
- Diurnal
- As diurnal amphibians, they are constantly active during the day hunting and defending territory. Morning hours often trigger the most vocalizations from males. They prefer to forage while the tank is well-lit and humidity is high. At night, they seek refuge deep within bromeliad leaves or tucked away in dense vegetation.
- Sociality
- Gregarious
- They are highly territorial, and males will frequently engage in wrestling matches if housed together in small enclosures. Despite their small stature, they are bold, active, and highly visible throughout the day. Their sharp, chirping calls can be heard frequently as males establish boundaries and court females. They are best kept in pairs or harems with ample space and visual barriers.
- Reproduction
- Oviparous
- This species exhibits fascinating obligate egg-feeding behavior where the female feeds her tadpoles unfertilized eggs. Males fiercely defend a calling territory to attract mates into bromeliads or leaf litter. After eggs hatch, the female carries the tadpoles to individual water-filled bromeliad axils. Raising the young requires a well-established planted tank, as artificial rearing is extremely difficult.
- Toxicity
- Toxic
- Non-toxic in captivity due to an alkaloid-free diet.
- Life stage
- Neotenic
- Tadpoles are aquatic and often cannibalistic, requiring separate rearing.
- Handling tolerance
- Display only
- Considered a display-only species, they should never be handled unless absolutely necessary for health checks or enclosure transfers. Their semi-permeable skin is highly sensitive to the oils, salts, and chemicals found on human hands, and handling causes them extreme stress.
- Brumation
- Not required
- As a tropical amphibian native to the consistently warm and humid environments of Central America, this species does not undergo brumation. They require stable, warm temperatures and high humidity year-round to thrive and maintain their active metabolism.
- Molting
- Periodic
- Like all dart frogs, they shed their skin regularly, a process that relies heavily on maintaining a high ambient humidity (80-100%). The shedding process is quick and often goes unnoticed by keepers, as the frog uses its legs to push the shed forward and promptly consumes it to recycle vital nutrients.
Image gallery
Licensed images linked to the species or, when marked, to the closest representative taxon.
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