TAXON MANAGEMENT GROUP (TMG) PROPOSAL
Species: Phyllobates vittatus (Cope, 1893) English Names Golfodulcean Poison Frog
Distribution: Found predominantly in the Golfo Dulce region of southwest Costa Rica, and is expected to occur in parts of immediately adjacent southwestern Panama. It has also been reported to occur further north near the city of Dominical in the province of Puntarenas.i (in situ, photo courtesy Devin Edmonds) Habitat: Lowland moist and wet forests (20 to 550 m), especially near streams. Most frequently found near cover such as roots, woody debris, and rocks.
Personal observations of habitat (Devin Edmonds; July 2007):
“I found two populations. The first was found directly next to a shallow, gravel-bottomed stream. The pair was under a log defending some eggs, and was literally within a foot of water. They second population I stumbled upon was further north in Osa. Like the first, they were fairly close to a steam (tributary of the Rio Tigre), but at least a few meters in from it within pretty dense forest. Most were hanging out around one particular buttress.”
Protected Status: CITES Appendix II
Conservation Status: • IUCN Red List – Endangered (2008)ii - Listed as Endangered because its extent of occurrence is less than 5,000 km2, its distribution is severely fragmented, and there is continuing decline in the extent and quality of its habitat in Costa Rica. As of 2008, the IUCN lists the population trend as decreasing.
• Threats include forest clearance for agricultural land and tree plantations, water pollution caused by contamination from gold mining activities, and the potential over-collection of adults for the pet trade. Most of the species’ range is in three protected areas in Costa Rica, including Corcovado National Park.
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Status in Captivity:
Population Origin Notes Management
Name (Location, Year) Wide-stripe Costa Rica Can be directly traced back to Larry Marshall, Manage Ilene Seivert, Tor Linbo, or Chuck Nishihara. Thin-stripe Costa Rica Can be directly traced back to Mike Shrom. Manage
(photo courtesy Rob Ossiboff) (froglet, photo courtesy Rob Ossiboff) (photo courtesy Craig Goldie)
(in situ, photo courtesy Devin Edmonds) (photo courtesy Devin Edmonds) (photo courtesy Rob Ossiboff)
(developing tadpoles, photo courtesy Rob Ossiboff) (photo courtesy Tor Linbo) (photo courtesy Craig Goldie)
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• General Notes: o This species displays significant morphological variation in the wild and current information suggests there are two distinct populations of P. vittatus in the U.S. as there appears to have been two independent importations that account for all surviving captive individuals. The “wide-stripe” population tends to have a larger adult body size and wider stripes than the “narrow-stripe” population. However, there appears to be considerable overlap in these traits exhibited by the two populations so they cannot be distinguished based on appearance alone. Therefore, the provenance of specimens must be ascertained to ensure the ancestry of the specimen in question.
o Zoos originally imported this species before most hobbyists were keeping frogs, sometime around 1982 (although it could have been brought in even earlier under the label of Phyllobates lugubris as early as 1973).
The population of vittatus most commonly available in the US hobby (sometimes known as “thin-striped” vittatus) was originally marketed as P. lugubris, although many experienced hobbyists debated its actual identity. Brent Brock collected egg samples from one of these frogs and had the DNA sequenced and compared with known sequences archived in Genbank.
The comparison strongly suggested that the samples were of P. vittatus origin. This identification was confirmed by Brian Kubicki, a Costa Rican field researcher familiar with extant wild populations of both species, who observed a captive specimen and direct descendent of the animal used for DNA sequencing. Brian was confident the specimen was indeed P. vittatus and most likely originated from an inland population.
o The first captive-bred vittatus were offered for sale to hobbyists as early as 1988 through the ISSP (International Society for the Study of Dendrobatids) newsletter. However, as mentioned above, it could have been made available earlier as P. lugubris. Various imports of captive-bred frogs from Europe took place during the 1990’s.
Suitability of Facilities Participating in this TMG: Phyllobates vittatus can be kept successfully in fairly standard vivarium conditions. A pair or trio can be kept comfortably in a standard 10 or 15 gallon aquarium or similarly sized enclosure. However, they can also do well in groups (5-6 frogs in a 20 gallon aquarium, for example) as aggression in this species is relatively low. Temperatures in its native coastal lowland forests are fairly consistent, so temperature ranges in the enclosure(s) should be maintained year-round between 20-26.7°C (68-80°F). The climate of the Golfo Dulce region of Costa Rica is unique in that, unlike much of the rest of the country, it is not defined by a pronounced dry season…or at least not a very long one (sometimes only a week or two of reduced rainfall, if at all).iii Therefore, moderate to high levels of relative humidity and regular misting are recommended for this species.
Husbandry techniques: Phyllobates vittatus is not a particularly demanding species. Because of their tendency in the wild to associate with cover such as woody debris, rocky banks, abundant leaf litter and dense vegetation, similar forms of cover should be provided in captivity. Because of the species’ proclivity toward
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streams and riparian areas, a water feature or enclosure replicating a stream bank may be beneficial. This, however, is not necessary as frogs in the vivarium will deposit tadpoles in any water-holding vessel available. Tadpoles are often deposited in relatively large and deep bodies of water compared with other dendrobatids, and tadpoles can be raised communally if provided a sufficiently large volume of water. P. vittatus can be maintained on a diet consisting primarily of fruit flies (D. melanogaster, D. hydei), but ready accept larger prey items such as waxworm larvae and crickets.
ASN partners within the TMG: TMG Point Person: Ron Skylstad (vittatus "dot" tmg "at" treewalkers "dot" org) • Brent Brock
Ultimate Goal of the Captive Population: Maintain a viable captive population over time.
Genetic and demographic goals: The captive population will be managed to maximize genetic diversity.
Number of founders and potential founders existing and number needed: Founders must be identified that can be reliably traced back to either of the above-mentioned sources. Remaining frogs of mixed or unknown provenance will be regarded as a de facto “wild type” population which can be accessioned, but will not be formerly managed.
“Wide-stripe” population: number of founders not determined.
“Narrow-stripe” population: number of founders not determined.
Origin and location of founders and potential founders: No information is available regarding the specific locale or wild populations from which founders were collected other than the country of origin (Costa Rica).
Target population size: The total minimum number of specimens required to genetically and demographically manage the P. vittatus population is 20 unrelated founders. However, given the length of time this species has been in the hobby, finding original wild-caught animals will be difficult, so individuals from the generation closest to wild-caught animals will be considered for inclusion in the founding populations. The oldest surviving generation of specimens should be determined and an effort should be made to manage as many of these founders as possible under the ASN.
Define length of program: Long-term program with a 100-year goal
Identify sources for specimens included in this Management Plan: This species, although not currently common, is kept by and available from individuals in the hobby. ASN looks forward to collaborating with individuals who breed P. vittatus. An effort should be made to enroll frogs of this species with ASN.
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TMG plan for managing this species: Phyllobates vittatus can be managed in pairs or groups. Offspring will be distributed to stewards. Numerous (approx. 50 or more) individual frogs can be produced annually from a single pair of frogs, so surplus offspring will be made available for sale.
Current Bibliography
• “Phyllobates vittatus” http://www.amphibiaweb.org
• Savage, Jay M. The Amphibians and Reptiles of Costa Rica. The University of Chicago Press, 2005.
Works Cited i Ryan, M. 2002. Phyllobates vittatus (Golfodulcean poison dart frog). Herpetological Review. 33: 318. ii Frank Solís, Roberto Ibáñez, Gerardo Chaves, Jay Savage, César Jaramillo, Querube Fuenmayor, Federico Bolaños 2008. Phyllobates vittatus. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
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