# Frogs & Toads > Other Frogs & Toads >  Spotted Marsh Frog

## CatherineM

The first of our Spotted Marsh Frog tadpoles (Limnodynastes tasmaniensis) has morphed.  It is about the size of my fingernail.  We have placed pin head crickets in the enclosure.

Is  any one else on the forum keeping these frogs or something similar?

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## Carlos

Hi Catherine  :Smile:  ! Do you have any pics of the froglets?  What kind of set-up do you keep them?  Thank you!

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## CatherineM



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## CatherineM

We have opened the curtains to try and get a better picture.  We will lower the water level when the rest of the tadpoles morph.


Picture 2.  Froglet is below side black rock on the right side.

Picture 3. Froglet is below the 3 green leaves.

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## CatherineM

The little marsh frog has now being joined by a southern brown frog.  We have a seven further tadpoles, 6 appear to be marsh tadpoles and one a southern brown.  Some have four legs.

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## Carlos

That's a lot of frogs; what are your plans for them  :Smile:  ?

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## CatherineM

We were told that we should have 70% developed into frogs.  We have lost one as we started with 10.  

At at this stage we may separate the tree frogs into their own tank.  I would like to give them more climbing room.  They grow to 3-6 cm.

That would leave the seven spotted marsh in their own tank.  We will lower the water level to give them more land space.  The Spotted Marsh Frog grow to between 3-5cm.  If need be we will get another larger tank.

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## CatherineM

Found another little frog this morning, not sure what type yet.  Only know that are two little ones as I saw them both at the same time

First frog the spotted marsh has coupled in size.  It growing very quickly.

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## CatherineM

This afternoon update.  We currently have three marsh frogs and one brown tree frog and two tadpoles.  Currently have three tadpoles/ frogs uncounted for.

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## CatherineM

Spotted Marsh Frog hiding in the water
]
Two Spotted Marsh tadpoles

]
Spotted Marsh Frog


Brown Tree Frog being "Green"

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## Carlos

Thanks for share  :Smile:  !

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## CatherineM

Did a head count yesterday, while cleaning.  5 spotted marsh frogs, 1 southern brown frog and 1 tadpole.   Looking at having a 70% survive rate.

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## taniaaust1

Hi there, I could? have those kind of frogs but arent sure.  My eldest one has just finished reabsorbing its tail this morning and I have another froglet too, they are only as big as my thumb nail thou. So tiny and cute.

 I got told mine were spotted barking marsh frogs.  I had 10 tabpoles which I got from someones pond and 2 other tabpoles from the pet shop which I got before the others which I got told were local marsh frogs.   The 2 lots of tabpoles look different thou from each other so I think they could be different kinds of marsh frogs.  The ones I got from the pet shop being plain black (no markings showing) so darker then the dark gray with paler grey bellies of the other mash frogs with many showing markings while still in the tabpole stage.

I havent lost many of my tabpoles at all (actually Im not aware of loosing any) thou some of the ones when I first got were very tiny. I so thou have one outside in my pond in which I arent sure if its going to make it or not (its tail is half eatten but its still swimming fine..it thou was floating tail up and couldnt stay down 5 days ago so I scooped out of the pond and put it into isolation inside but it was well and swimming properly again 12hrs later so back in the pond it went.

One thing thou I notice about your tabpoles in which my marsh frogs seem different to yours, is that when my spotted barking tabpoles get their legs.. their legs are a completely different colour to their bodies .. yours thou seem to come throu the same colour as their bodies.  So maybe we dont have the same, as mine have legs very different from their bodies when they first come throu (and then their bodies change colour after to match the legs).  

I need to work out the proper name of the 2 lots of marsh tabpoles I got.  Im kind of worried about my baby frog and froglet as they climbed half way out of their pond today so may leave pond any time (if that is what marsh frogs do???) but around my pond is infested with ants (so Im worried they may attack the frogs).  Hopefully baby frogs will be smart enough to avoid the ants and find themselves a safe place.

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## CatherineM

My spotted marsh frogs also know as spotted grass frogs are one of the five species of frog we can keep in Victoria without a license.

Their scientific name is limnodynastes tasmanoensis.

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## CatherineM

The Barking Marsh Frog (Limnodynastes fletcheri) is an other species of frog, very similar looking to the spotted marsh.

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## taniaaust1

> My spotted marsh frogs also know as spotted grass frogs are one of the five species of frog we can keep in Victoria without a license.
> 
> Their scientific name is limnodynastes tasmanoensis.



We get limnodynastes tasmanoensis in Adelaide too. Maybe the first 2 tabpoles I got from pet shop are those, the pet shop had no idea what kind of marsh frogs they grow into, best info I could get from them were "local marsh frogs" (its kind of sad when a pet shop has no idea what its really selling people).

The regulations in Sth Australia when I looked into it (unless I was looking at old online info) are far less strict then the other states of Australia. So I could build up a frog collection here (hope they dont change things).

Im actually interested in breeding/conservation of the endangered/vulnerable species  (eg Litoria raniformis, growling grass frogs). in natural like environments once I have experience with tabpoles and frogs (of cause I'd definately have to look more into the laws here as far as that went). I cant thou see myself as doing that for at least 2-3 years thou, would like ponds all set up and going healthy and other healthy frogs breeding happily there first with no issues

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## CatherineM

Some nice pictures of spotted marsh frog

http://frogs.org.au/frogs/species/Li.../tasmaniensis/

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## Jared

Congratulations on the morphs they are looking Great! Love Marsh frogs an interesting species to keep, if I had the space I would defiantly get back into them, thanks for the share and updates.

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CatherineM

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## CatherineM

Jared,

Can you have a quick look at the green frog.  Does he look like a brown tree frog to you?

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## taniaaust1

great photos at that site.  

here's the first photo I got of my first two frogs (as can be seen one is climbing out of the pond with his tail still on, the other still had some tail day before.. now who told me marsh frogs dont climb!).

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## Jared

> Jared,
> 
> Can you have a quick look at the green frog.  Does he look like a brown tree frog to you?


Yeah I would say it is based on the brown stripe across the eyes, and I have seen them in this variation of colour before.

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## taniaaust1

Here's a photo of one of my baby spotted marsh frogs which shows colour better.

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## CatherineM

The Breeder is now saying the "southern brown frog" is a "green tree frog".  The frog has been out of the water for three weeks, it is 2.5cm in length.  I will post more photos tomorrow.  The frog is currently kept room temperature.

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## Jared

> The Breeder is now saying the "southern brown frog" is a "green tree frog".  The frog has been out of the water for three weeks, it is 2.5cm in length.  I will post more photos tomorrow.  The frog is currently kept room temperature.


The only thing I would say is that a leaf green tree frog would be a possibility but I'd still say its a southern brown, you will eventually know the answer as he grows!

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## CatherineM

Jared, do you know how fast southern brown grow?

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## Jared

If it is 2.5cm long it's not too far away as they grow to about 4.5 cm long on average but I'm not sure how long that will take.

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CatherineM

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## taniaaust1

I have a question hoping someone(s) can answer. 

I have a tabpole which is different in the underside colouring then the rest. It has a silver underside. Do spotted marsh tabpoles ever have silver undersides? Its the same colour elsewhere as my spotted marsh tabpoles thou its also got none of that freckled or dappled look on it yet either.. so is plain in colour (but pretty with its silver underside).

Anyway.. interested to hear any of your marsh tabpoles have silver undersides? or is this likely to be something else thou it blends with other tabpoles I have on the other parts of its body Another kind of marsh frog??? (the two types of frogs I have, I was given from outdoor pond 10 tabpoles which were supposed to be spotted marsh (some certainly are that) and I had 2 tabpoles which I was told were "local marsh frogs" whatever those are. 

Silver undersides??

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## Jared

> I have a question hoping someone(s) can answer. 
> 
> I have a tabpole which is different in the underside colouring then the rest. It has a silver underside. Do spotted marsh tabpoles ever have silver undersides? Its the same colour elsewhere as my spotted marsh tabpoles thou its also got none of that freckled or dappled look on it yet either.. so is plain in colour (but pretty with its silver underside).
> 
> Anyway.. interested to hear any of your marsh tabpoles have silver undersides? or is this likely to be something else thou it blends with other tabpoles I have on the other parts of its body Another kind of marsh frog??? (the two types of frogs I have, I was given from outdoor pond 10 tabpoles which were supposed to be spotted marsh (some certainly are that) and I had 2 tabpoles which I was told were "local marsh frogs" whatever those are. 
> 
> Silver undersides??


Nothing to be concerned about just colour variations, in my experience with marsh frogs anyway  :Smile:  when it morphs you will know for sure what type you have!

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## taniaaust1

> Nothing to be concerned about just colour variations, in my experience with marsh frogs anyway  when it morphs you will know for sure what type you have!


Do you know is there anything which separates out the difference between marsh frogs and other kinds of frogs?
....

Also Im wondering can one type of marsh frog breed with a different species of marsh frog?

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## Jared

> Do you know is there anything which separates out the difference between marsh frogs and other kinds of frogs?
> ....
> 
> Also Im wondering can one type of marsh frog breed with a different species of marsh frog?


The pattern is the thing you will be able to use for identification as with most, check the frog species in your area marsh frogs are different from most Australian frogs so it is pretty obvious when they grow  :Smile: , also there is always a possibility that could happen but it would be rare.

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## taniaaust1

My best frog pic. so far  :Smile:   , here's a photo I took yesterday of one of my baby frogs.. spotted marsh frog I assume, unless someone tells me otherwise... (its still got a wee bit of his tail).  Im currently making a bog area for the frogs.

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## Heather

So adorable  :Smile: .

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## taniaaust1

Ive been having an exciting time out in the rain lol. 

A baby spotted frog in my pond is very hungry. Baby crickets are soo hard to catch in the container and a dead cricket was the result, so I dropped the dead cricket the slab in the pond it front of it (not expecting him to eat it, I thought wild frogs probably eat only moving things). Anyway the bady frog ate it dead off the concrete.

So I dropped some crickets in the water with it.. and it started going after those too.. the baby frog got very excited and me along with it. So I started putting half drowned crickets onto a stick and giving them to him from the stick. He was letting me a hand length from him and then coming to get the crickets. Sadly Im out of crickets now and wont have more for days, so he's now going to have to hunt for bugs out there himself. (this frog has been a frog for just over a week or so and is hanging around in the pond and hasnt moved on like the others do. Im seeing him every 2-3 days).

I'll buy him the next size crickets then.  He's almost an itch in size now.

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## taniaaust1

Maybe this could interest someone. On gumtree, someone is selling an (orange) albino spotted marsh frog for $150 neg. RARE ALBINO SPOTTED MARSH FROG FOR GOOD HOME. | Reptiles & Amphibians | Gumtree Australia Tea Tree Gully Area - Highbury | 1043589088 

Makes one wish one had albinos appearing in the pond.

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## CatherineM

We have finished setting up a second tank today and moved Mr/Mrs Brown to the second tank.

Although it's ok to keep "Southern Brown Frogs" and "Spotted Marsh Frogs" together in the same tank.

It is not ok to keep a "Green Tree Frog" with "Spotted Marsh Frogs".

We have total of 6 Frogs, 5 Spotted Marsh Frogs" and "Green Tree Frog" .   The tree has lost the brown stripe.

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## taniaaust1

A while back, I decided to take two of my spotted marsh tabpoles out of the pond and have them inside so I could experience what it was like to really keep frogs, rather then just having them outside in the pond.

They are both doing well, one should have front legs any day now. One thing Ive found out from doing this is they just love to eat waterlily leaves which are just starting to decay 2 tabpoles are eatting a whole miniture waterlily leaf every 6 days. Im amazed at how fast these tabpoles will eat an actual leaf. 

Before this I'd been just giving them some fish food flakes which they never got the grip of sucking in from the surface as they'd previous been feeding from the pond bottom. They werent like my previous ones (now frogs and left the pond) which were got from a pet shop and did know how to eat those from surface of water.

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