Amphibians certainly have their own unique mystique. They are silent, hidden-away creatures until they choose to emerge and display themselves–they are living enigmas.

There are three major categories of amphibians: frogs, toads and salamanders. There is also a minor category that is often overlooked: caecilians. Caecilians are an uncommon, poorly known and rarely seen amphibians that look like earthworms on steroids. Some species can be quite beautiful, with stripes of blue or yellow. However, they typically live a completely fossorial life–aquatic species lurk in muck and terrestrial species prefer to bury themselves under moss. These are not the kind of animals that thrill most terrarists or herpers.


Frogs & Toads
Green tree frogs are an almost prototypical pet frog. Small, inexpensive, brightly colored and capable of a beautiful croak, they can be kept in reasonably large numbers (perhaps eight or 10) in a 15-gallon tank. They are cricket feeders (always remember to dust their crickets in calcium and vitamins) and will thrive for many owners. Like most frogs, they are nocturnal and work better for someone who can enjoy their tank in the evening.

Firebellied toads are a Southeast Asian rice paddy frog that does very well in groups. Their exquisite coloring–gold and green on top and fire engine red on bottom with black speckling all over–is an effective pond camouflage on top and a stern warning to potential predators below.

Horned frogs are a complex of species ranging through South America and are widely captive bred in the U.S. Voracious feeders, capable of a powerful bite with rows of tiny, sharp, serrated teeth, they are commonly referred to in the trade as “Pac-Man” frogs, and adults will often readily take adult mice. Their coloring ranges through browns, tans, reds and greens, and like Ball pythons and snowflakes, no two are alike.

Of all the frogs available to the pet trade, my favorite candidate for a pet is the White’s tree frog. We see (and carry) both the common New Guinea race, which tend to be olive green, and their less commonly available Australian cousins, which are of legal necessity captive bred and a stunning blue-green color. These frogs tend to an appearance of obesity as they age, developing great folds of skin and earning their Aussie common name of “dumpy frog.”

I have heard dozens of ludicrous explanations through the years to explain the difference between frogs and toads. For the record, the only difference between the two groups is that frogs make their poison throughout their skin and toads make the majority of theirs in two glands located behind each eye. So, if the amphibian a customer is holding has a pronounced bump behind each eye, it is, in fact, a toad.

Toads tend toward a slightly drier habitat than most frogs and can be surprisingly adept burrowers. They tend to handle a bit better than frogs, though many will tend to urinate when first picked up. They are delightful terrarium inhabitants.


Salamanders
A broad family, the salamanders range from the common fish tank denizens like firebellied and eastern newts to the gorgeous terrestrial tiger and fire salamanders, to the completely aquatic tiger, relatives to the axolotls, to the giant and fearsome looking hellbenders. Most land-based salamanders are fossorial, living their lives hidden away from our prying eyes, and thus not particularly popular pets. Of them, I prefer the fire, a beautiful European forest salamander that is also durable and long-lived. Of the aquatic salamanders, axolotls are a Mexican mountain lake denizen with beautiful feathery external gills and beatific personalities. Albino axolotls have an eerie ghostlike appearance.

In my youth, I set up a 50-gallon tank in my living room and found them an alluring entertainment after a long day at work, so much so that I found I no longer had much interest in watching television. However, they have made their primary mark in human affairs as a dominant laboratory subject.


Owen Maercks has enjoyed being immersed in the world of professional herpetoculture for nearly 30 years. His store, the East Bay Vivarium in Berkeley, Calif., is one of the oldest and largest herptile specialty stores in the U.S.