Oophaga
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Through Extinction
Etymology
Oophaga, Greek for "egg eater" (oon, phagos), is descriptive of the tadpoles' diet.
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Reproduction
While presumably all dendrobatids show parental care, this is unusually advanced in Oophaga: the tadpoles feed exclusively on trophic (unfertilized) eggs supplied as food by the mother; the father is not involved. Through the eggs, the mother also passes defensive toxins to the tadpoles: Oophaga pumilio tadpoles experimentally fed with eggs from alkaloid-free frogs did not contain alkaloids.
Species
There are twelve species in this genus:
Captivity
Oophaga may be kept as pets by experienced amphibian keepers, but they are challenging to breed in captivity as only parents can feed and care for tadpoles.