Defining Characteristics:

• Easy to keep
• Mostly brown with a yellow or orange stripe
• Shy
• “Wherrrh” call
• Moderately sized
• Can be gregarious

Name: Kaloula pulchra - pulchra means “beautiful” and Kaloula is the genus name given to the Asian narrow-mouth frogs. Commonly known as Chubby Frogs or Asian Painted Frogs, they get their name from their rotund appearance and the brownish yellow/orange stripe down the sides of their bodies. 

Recommended Enclosure Size & Setup: For a pair of adult Painted Frogs, a 20 gallon long or an 18x18x12 front opening enclosure is sufficient. 

As this species is semi fossorial, a good substrate that facilitates this behavior like coco fiber is best. A bioactive option for this species is Josh’s Frogs Tropical Biobedding and various species of small isopods or springtails can be added.

Live plants that root in multiple places and don't need a lot of nutrients from the soil (like pothos) are ideal for this type of setup. A clean dish of water should always be present in the enclosure for the frogs to soak. 

Check out our Asian Painted Frog Habitat Kits!

Temperature (°F): Temperatures for the Painted Frog should be kept in the low to mid 70s, which is great for the typical home enclosure. A digital thermometer is a great way to monitor conditions within the tank.

Humidity: Humidity should be kept within the 50-70% range and can be monitored using a hygrometer. However the more important thing to consider with humidity is the moisture content of the substrate. Semi fossorial species will gain more from this than the ambient humidity.

Size: Male and female Painted Frogs can be very similar in size and range from 2-3 inches in size. Froglets are sold at about 3/4 inch in size.

Age: Painted frogs can live to be 10 years old in captivity. Frogs sold from Josh’s frogs will be at least 2 months out of the water. 

Feeding: In the wild these frogs primarily eat ants, but in captivity crickets and cockroaches are a good staple to build off of. Dust feeders with Repashy Calcium Plus.

Check out our Asian Painted Frog Feeder Bundles!

Sexing: Sexing Painted Frogs can be difficult until they are fully grown. Males will develop a darkening of the throat and females tend to be on the larger end of the spectrum of size for this species.  

Color/Pattern: Asian Painted Frogs are a dark brown frog with stripes along their sides. These stripes can range from a tan coloration to light yellow to rusty orange. Adult male frogs will have a dark patch on their throats.

Josh's Frogs does not recommend, support, or endorse line breeding as we believe this leads to weaker captive animals and nature has done a wonderful job of creating an amazing variation in color and pattern of frogs already.

Social Behavior: Kaloula pulchra is a nocturnal species, so they will be most active at night. Like most frogs, Asian Painted Frogs won’t seek out the company of other frogs unless they are looking to mate. That being said, these frogs will live with each other with minimal issues in terms of aggression or male persistence. When threatened, this species will inflate its body to look bigger to predators and if harassed further will secrete a noxious sticky substance from its skin to make itself even more unappealing.

Breeding: These frogs, like many tropical frogs, require a dry cycling before they are ready to breed in captivity. After a period of cycling, heavy feeding before being placed into a rain chamber is recommended for breeding in captivity.

Josh's Frogs recommends purchasing multiple frogs if you are interested in breeding them – this greatly increases the chances of getting a pair.

Natural Range: This species is found in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Taiwan (introduced), Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore (introduced), Sri Lanka, Thailand, Viet Nam, Guam (introduced), and the Philippines (introduced).

History in the Hobby: For the most part these frogs have been available as wild-caught imports. However more people recently have started to breed them in captivity, leading to healthy captive bred babies.

Links of Interest:

• Amphibiaweb - Kaloula pulchra
• Reptiles Magazine
• Wikipedia
• 🔊Audio of call