POISON PARENTS

The life cycle of the strawberry poison dart frog

NURSERY

The pool becomes a nursery for the tadpoles for the next few months, where they will undergo metamorphosis and become adults.

POOL HUNT

Once the eggs hatch, tadpoles latch onto the back of their mother. She carries them along the sides of trees and tall bromeliad plants in search of a pool of water.

SYMBIOTIC

Bromeliad plants also benefit from having tadpoles between their leaves by absorbing the nutrients provided by their faeces.

ON GUARD

Parent frogs will guard their offspring for around ten days, occasionally watering them with their urine.

COUPLING UP

Mating occurs throughout the year, particularly during the rainy season, at a site on the forest floor that has been chosen by the male.

A frog’s clutch can vary in size, but typically strawberry poison dart frogs will lay around six eggs.

Some species can lay as many as 40 eggs.

FERTILISING LAYING

Eggs are deposited on leaf litter in a dark and moist environment. Among some poison dart frog species the male releases his sperm onto them for fertilisation.