Ceratophrys cranwelli (Albino)

Cranwell's Horned Frog

Since the very beginning of my amphibian collection, this little aggressive chubby frog has immediately caught my attention. I have often taken it to various museums and reptile exhibitions and the bright colours have always attracted visitors.

Background information

One of the several species of mountainous tropical rain forest. They inhabit northern Argentina, Uruguay, Rio de Janeiro and Brazil. These frogs are terrestrial have are very similar to mix up with the Argentive horned frog, by their looks.
These frogs are more popular in the collections of terrariumists, than the Budget frogs. Grown Cranwell's horned frogs are 15-20 cm in length.
Due to the high production of somatropin, the growth hormone, in their bodies, there are often cases of gigantism. Frogs with this defect grow up to 30-35 cm.
The colours of this frog vary greatly as well and that is one of the main reasons why keepers choose the Cranwell's frog for their collections. The colour of the back of the frog varies from light-olive to dark-gray brown. The spots on the back also vary from pale pink to fulvous-brown. Albino mutations are common as well. In this case the frog's colour varies from pale-beige to neon-yellow with red or orange spots on the back.

Terrarium

If you chose to keep one of these frogs, you will require a tank with good ventilation and the dimensions of 30㎤. As these frogs are terrestrial, I would recommend to focus on a larger tank bottom, rather than height.

Substrate

As for substrate each keeper has his or her own preferences. You can chose between sphagnum moss, coconut flakes, coarse polished gravel with no sharp edges, soft sponges or paper towels with 1cm of water over it, as the frogs tend to inhabit swamps and marshes. However, I would recommend you to use the sphagnum.

Temperature

The temperature in the tank should be kept at 23-27ºC. It is desirable to use a heating pad or a thermal cable in one of the corners of the bottom of tank.

Light

These frogs do not require any special sources of light.
When keeping an albino Cranwell's frog you might want to consider keeping the brightness of the light low, as bright light may affect their hypersensitive eyes.

Feeding

The Cranwelli frogs ear basically the same food, as Argentine horned frogs and Budget frogs: crickets, roaches, mealworms and rainworms, mice and small rats, goldfish and small frogs. An interesting fact is  that these frog species is that they lack certain muscles in their throat, the pharynx, so when hunting, the frogs strangle their prey with their powerful jaws and then swallow it not with swallowing muscles, but with the bottom of their eyeballs.
Pet stores usually sell special powders, which are the necessary minerals and vitamins for amphibians and reptiles. Frogs should be regularly fed these triturations in order to provide a better metabolism and growth.

And some information from myself

The substrate is supposed to hold the moisture, but at the same time prevent the stagnation of the water, which is supposed to hold the humidity at 80-90%. The humidity can also be kept contant by spraying the tank 2 times a day or installing a special frog humidifier. You should also place a bowl with water. It should be big enough for the frog to fit in and even for hunting when feeding the frog fish.
An interesting fact is that the Ceratophrys and Lepidobatrachus frog species lack certain muscles in their throat, the pharynx, so when hunting, the frogs first strangle their prey with their powerful jaws and then swallow it, not with swallowing muscles, but with the bottom of their eyeballs.
The Cranwell's horned frogs should be kept alone in the tank, as cannibalism is very common. Like most frogs, Cranwell's frogs sleep with open eyes.
When buying a Cranwell's frog you should look at the colour of it's skin and purchase the one with brighter colours. The colour determines the well-being of the frog. Also a good method of testing the health of the frog before buying is to check it's reflexes by moving your hand in front of it's head: the frog will either bury itself in the substrate, or attack the hand. Either result shows that the animal is healthy.

Feeding a cricket to my Cranwell's albino frog