Josh's Frogs
Solomon Island Leaf Frog Care Sheet
Solomon Island Leaf Frogs are a colorful terrestrial frog from the Solomon Islands. Bred for the pet trade by Josh's Frogs, Solomon Island Leaf Frogs actually skip the tadpole stage, and make fascinating pets. Make sure to check out our video on
How to Care for Solomon Island Leaf Frogs. don't forget - healthy, captive bred Solomon Island Leaf frogs are available right now at Josh's Frogs -
CLICK HERE to check them out!
Solomon Island Leaf Frog Coloration:A very variable leaf litter frog,
Ceratobatrachus guentheri are born in a multitude of colors. Even siblings can look completely different from each other! The base color can range from tan to yellow, orange, and even lime green in some individuals. Spots can be visible in some individual SILFS, but generally are not present in any significant numbers, if at all.
Solomon Island Leaf Frog siblings, showing a wide range of colors.
Age of Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:
Ceratobatrachus guentheri is capable of living well over 5 years in captivity under ideal conditions. Maximum potential lifespan of Solomon Island Leaf Frogs is unknown, as there are not that many hobbyists working with them in captivity. All SILFs for sale at Josh's Frogs are well started juveniles, and are 2-3 months old.
Size of Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:Adult female SILFs are larger, measuring in at up to approximately 3.5 inches. Male
Ceratobatrachus guentheri are a bit smaller, averaging about 2.5 inches at maturity. All of the Solomon Island Leaf Frog froglets Josh's Frogs sells are well started juveniles, and measure approximately 3/4” long.
Feeding Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:Solomon Island Leaf Frogs can take surprisingly large foods. All of the SILFs Josh's Frogs sells will readily eat small (~1/4"") crickets. All feeder insects should be dusted with a vitamin/mineral supplement. Want to know more about feeding SILFS? Check out our video on
Feeding Solomon Island Leaf Frogs. For a wide selection of feeder insects for sale, please visit our
Feeder Insects for Sale page. Make sure your Solomon Island Leaf Frogs are getting a great diet with our
Solomon Island Leaf Frog Supplement Bundle.
Solomon Island Leaf Frog Temperature Needs:
Ceratobatrachus guentheri can tolerate a temperature range of 70 F to 85 F, but prefer temperatures in the upper 70s. Temperatures over 90F are dangerous, and can quickly prove fatal for Solomon Island Leaf Frogs. Monitor your temperature with a
digital thermometer.
Solomon Island Leaf Frog Humidity Needs:Like many tropical frogs, Solomon Isle Leaf Frogs prefer a humidity range of 50 – 70%, but can tolerate humidity down to 30% for short periods of time if the frogs have access to water. Very low humidity levels, especially without access to water, can quickly be fatal. Mist regularly.
Housing Newly Hatched Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:After 6-8 weeks of incubation, Solomon Island Leaf Frog eggs will hatch into miniature versions of the adults. For the first 24 hours, Josh's Frogs recommends leaving newly hatched SILFs in the incubator, then rinsing any substrate off of them and moving them to a plastic container with little or no ventilation. For the first several weeks, baby Solomon Island Leaf Frogs are kept on paper towel, with some
leaves for hiding places, and a handful of
sphagnum moss for humidity.
Young SILFs may not eat for the first week or so of their life, as they are still feeding off of yolk. After a week, offer
springtails and
fruit flies. After a few weeks, try to incorporate young
crickets into the diet, as well. All insects should be dusted with a quality
vitamin/mineral supplement.
Newly hatched Solomon Island Leaf Frogs, swollen with yolk.
Housing Juvenile Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:Josh's Frogs recommends setting up juvenile Solomon Island Leaf Frogs (like the
ones we sell) simply, in a 10 gallon or similar sized
plastic enclosure with a ventilated or screen top. A base layer of 1/2-1"" of
coconut fiber will work well, with
leaf litter and a handful of
sphagnum moss on one end. Spray daily.
Housing Adult Solomon Island Leaf Frogs: Solomon Island Leaf Frogs make amazing pets. Josh's Frogs recommends a 40B or 24x18x18 Vivarium for 1-3 adult leaf litter frogs. The enclosure must be spacious, or else your frogs will damage their noses. This will heal over time, but will never look the same. Enclosures should have a screen top to allow for proper ventilation.
A substrate of 1/3 coconut fiber and 2/3 reptile bark works well. Provide 2-4"" of substrate, as Leaf Frogs like to dig into the substrate, and need deeper substrate to bury their eggs. Also provide a layer of leaf litter to make the frogs feel at home. A few pieces of cork bark or similar cage decor is fine, as are real or fake plants. If you are using live terrarium plants, we recommend leaving the plants in pots, then burying the pots in the substrate - this will make it easier to remove the plants when you change the substrate, which should be changed every 1-2 months. For more information on housing SILFs, please watch out video on
Housing Solomon Island Leaf Frogs!
Sexing Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:
Ceratobatrachus guentheri are never easily sexable. Both sexes may call, although males will call more often. Males may call as young as 4-5 months. Visually, SILFs are not sexable until 10-12 months of age. Male Solomon Island Leaf Frogs tend to be smaller than females, which often appear both longer and wider. Males may have 2 visible white lines running parallel on their body - some literature suggests this may be the frog's ureters. Breeding conditioned females may have visible eggs when their belly is examined. For more information, please watch our video on
Sexing Solomon Island Leaf Frogs! Josh's Frogs sells 2-3 month old juveniles that are not sexable unless otherwise noted.
Female Solomon Island Leaf Frog laying an egg.A female Solomon Island Leaf Frog will deposit a clutch of 10-30 eggs in a 1-2"" deep depression in the soil, which will be buried. Josh's Frogs recommends removing SILF eggs from the vivarium (baby SILFs will hatch in the vivarium, and may be eaten by the adults), and raising them on coconut fiber in a sealed plastic enclosure that is ventilated regularly. Make a small indent in the coconut fiber with your finger, and place the pea-sized eggs individually in these. Some eggs may mold over and go bad - remove these from the container as soon as mold appears.
Solomon Island Egg Clutch Incubating. Several egg clutches may be laid in a year, so you'll get plenty of practice rearing Solomon Isle Leaf Frog eggs! Make sure to watch out video on incubating
Solomon Island Leaf Frog eggs! After 6-8 weeks, small, fully formed Solomon Island Leaf Frogs will hatch. No tadpole stage with these guys!
Solomon Island Leaf Frog siblings, showing a wide range of colors.
Age of Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:
Ceratobatrachus guentheri is capable of living well over 5 years in captivity under ideal conditions. Maximum potential lifespan of Solomon Island Leaf Frogs is unknown, as there are not that many hobbyists working with them in captivity. All SILFs for sale at Josh's Frogs are well started juveniles, and are 2-3 months old.
Size of Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:Adult female SILFs are larger, measuring in at up to approximately 3.5 inches. Male
Ceratobatrachus guentheri are a bit smaller, averaging about 2.5 inches at maturity. All of the Solomon Island Leaf Frog froglets Josh's Frogs sells are well started juveniles, and measure approximately 3/4” long.
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Solomon Island Leaf Frog Egg, about the size of a pea. |
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Solomon Island Leaf Frogs at birth. |
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Solomon Island Leaf Frogs at 1 week old. |
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Solomon Island Leaf Frogs at 2 weeks old. |
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Solomon Island Leaf Frogs at 5 weeks old. |
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Solomon Island Leaf Frogs at 8 weeks old. |
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Solomon Island Leaf Frog Juvenile for sale, about 9 weeks old. |
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Solomon Island Leaf Frog Adult Male, about a year old. |
Young SILFs may not eat for the first week or so of their life, as they are still feeding off of yolk. After a week, offer
springtails and
fruit flies. After a few weeks, try to incorporate young
crickets into the diet, as well. All insects should be dusted with a quality
vitamin/mineral supplement.
Newly hatched Solomon Island Leaf Frogs, swollen with yolk.
Housing Juvenile Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:Josh's Frogs recommends setting up juvenile Solomon Island Leaf Frogs (like the
ones we sell) simply, in a 10 gallon or similar sized
plastic enclosure with a ventilated or screen top. A base layer of 1/2-1"" of
coconut fiber will work well, with
leaf litter and a handful of
sphagnum moss on one end. Spray daily.
Housing Adult Solomon Island Leaf Frogs: Solomon Island Leaf Frogs make amazing pets. Josh's Frogs recommends a 40B or 24x18x18 Vivarium for 1-3 adult leaf litter frogs. The enclosure must be spacious, or else your frogs will damage their noses. This will heal over time, but will never look the same. Enclosures should have a screen top to allow for proper ventilation.
A substrate of 1/3 coconut fiber and 2/3 reptile bark works well. Provide 2-4"" of substrate, as Leaf Frogs like to dig into the substrate, and need deeper substrate to bury their eggs. Also provide a layer of leaf litter to make the frogs feel at home. A few pieces of cork bark or similar cage decor is fine, as are real or fake plants. If you are using live terrarium plants, we recommend leaving the plants in pots, then burying the pots in the substrate - this will make it easier to remove the plants when you change the substrate, which should be changed every 1-2 months. For more information on housing SILFs, please watch out video on
Housing Solomon Island Leaf Frogs!
Sexing Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:
Ceratobatrachus guentheri are never easily sexable. Both sexes may call, although males will call more often. Males may call as young as 4-5 months. Visually, SILFs are not sexable until 10-12 months of age. Male Solomon Island Leaf Frogs tend to be smaller than females, which often appear both longer and wider. Males may have 2 visible white lines running parallel on their body - some literature suggests this may be the frog's ureters. Breeding conditioned females may have visible eggs when their belly is examined. For more information, please watch our video on
Sexing Solomon Island Leaf Frogs! Josh's Frogs sells 2-3 month old juveniles that are not sexable unless otherwise noted.
Adult Female Solomon Island Leaf frog with eggs visible.
Breeding Solomon Island Leaf Frogs:[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfs476ZTb_o[/embed]Solomon Island Leaf Frogs are relatively easy to breed, as long as you have both sexes. Some believe that SILFs skew female heavy - more offspring are born female than male. While this was certainly true in our case (out of 10 SILFs we raised up, only 1 was a male!), many other hobbyists have experienced the opposite problem (all males), or have gotten a more even sex ratio. Male SILFs will produce a loud, barking/quacking call in an attempt to attract a mate. If successful, the female will deposit a clutch of 10-30 eggs in a 1-2"" deep depression in the soil, which will be buried. Solomon Island Leaf Frogs eggs are about the size of a pea. Several egg clutches may be laid in a year.
Female Solomon Island Leaf Frog laying an egg.A female Solomon Island Leaf Frog will deposit a clutch of 10-30 eggs in a 1-2"" deep depression in the soil, which will be buried. Josh's Frogs recommends removing SILF eggs from the vivarium (baby SILFs will hatch in the vivarium, and may be eaten by the adults), and raising them on coconut fiber in a sealed plastic enclosure that is ventilated regularly. Make a small indent in the coconut fiber with your finger, and place the pea-sized eggs individually in these. Some eggs may mold over and go bad - remove these from the container as soon as mold appears.
Solomon Island Egg Clutch Incubating. Several egg clutches may be laid in a year, so you'll get plenty of practice rearing Solomon Isle Leaf Frog eggs! Make sure to watch out video on incubating
Solomon Island Leaf Frog eggs! After 6-8 weeks, small, fully formed Solomon Island Leaf Frogs will hatch. No tadpole stage with these guys!
Solomon Island Egg, about 5 days before hatching.
