Defining Characteristics:

• Great Beginner Tree Frog
• Unique wood grained pattern
• Bold
• Moderately difficult to Breed
• Loud Call
• Large
• Can be Housed in Groups

Name: The Borneo Eared Frog has a very obvious common name – it is a tree frog that looks like it has large, spikey ears! These are actually ridges of bone on the animal's skull. It is also know as the file-eared tree frog or the bony headed flying frog.

Recommended Terrarium Size: Borneo Eared Frogs are easy to house. Choose a large enclosure – an 18x18x24 Exo Terra Glass Terrarium is a good size for 2-4 juveniles or adults. Opinions on substrates vary – we’ve had luck with finely ground coconut fiber, damp paper towel, and sphagnum moss. If using sphagnum moss, make sure to press down the moss so it is flat – this will greatly reduce the risk of impaction. Paper towel will need to be changed 2-3 times a week. Here at Josh's Frogs we use utilize a fully bioactive set up with sphagnum on top of tropical biobedding. Borneo Eared Frogs need constant access to fresh, clean water – a large water bowl is a must! Use an easy to clean dish, such as an Exo Terra Water Dish, as the frog will be using the dish as a latrine and you will need to clean daily. Scrub the dish and disinfect with a 5% bleach solution or ReptiSan. Want to make caring for your Borneo Eared Frogs easy? Check out the Josh's Frogs Tree Frog Kits!

Temperature: They do best when kept in the mid-high 70s. At Josh's Frogs, we house our Borneo Eared Frogs at 74-76F. Temperatures in the mid/high 80s F can quickly be fatal, especially when coupled with a lack of water or humidity. Measure temperature with a digital temperature gauge.

Humidity: Borneo Eared Frogs require moderately high humidity, and are best kept at 60-70% humidity. Providing ventilation is very important - we recommend using at least a half screen top. Stagnant, humid conditions quickly leads to bacterial skin infections in Borneo Eared Frogs. A large dish of clean water should always be provided. Monitor humidity with a digital hygrometer.

Size: At the time of sale, Borneo Eared Frogs from Josh’s Frogs will measure about 1 1/4″ and be between 8 and 10 weeks old. The Borneo Eared Frogs will quickly grow to 2″ within another 2-3 months. After about 12-18 months they will be nearly adult size, with males measuring about 2 1/2″ and females another inch larger than the males.

Age: With proper care, Borneo Eared Frogs can live up to and over 5 years. Reports of 8-10 year old animals abound, and many hobbyists routinely keep Borneo Eared Frogs for 4-5 years. All Borneo Eared Frog froglets sold by Josh's Frogs are 8-10 weeks old.

Feeding: At the time of sale, captive bred Borneo Eared Frogs from Josh’s Frogs have been chowing down on 1/4″ crickets for several weeks and growing like weeds! The Borneo Eared Frogs will quickly grow to 2″ within another 2-3 months and be large enough to eat 1/2″ crickets. As adults, Borneo Eared Frogs will easily eat 3/4″ or adult crickets. All crickets should be dusted with a quality vitamin/mineral supplement. At Josh's Frogs, we dust with Repashy Calcium Plus, RepCal Calcium with D3, and RepCal Herptivite.

Sexing: Borneo Eared Frogs are fairly easy to sex as adults. Females are much larger than males, with a wider and more stout head. Females will be about 1" longer than males, and are easily 50% heavier. All Borneo Eared Frog froglets sold by Josh's Frogs are unsexable.

Color/Pattern: In daylight Borneo Eared Frogs are a combination of white, tan, black, and brown, patterned in an attractive wood grained pattern. Their sides have a bit of black and white banding which is covered when the frogs tuck their legs against their body to reduce exposed surface area, thus reducing water loss via evaporation. At night, when they are active, Borneo Eared Frogs are a bit darker, and their pattern is more well defined.

Social Behavior: These frogs are easily kept in groups, especially when young. Make sure that all frogs are getting adequate food - sometimes froglets will out-compete each other. We house males and females separately at Josh's Frogs - males may bother females by constantly trying to mate. If this happens, separate the frogs or reduce the humidity. Josh's Frogs recommends purchasing multiple frogs if you are interested in breeding them – this greatly increases the chances of getting a pair.

Breeding: Borneo Eared Frogs travel down to the forest floor in search of pools of water to breed. Eggs are laid on vegetation hanging above the pools, encased in foam nests. As the tadpoles hatch, they fall quite a distance (sometimes several meters) before splashing into the water. Tadpoles quickly grow in the pools, and can leave the water in 8-10 weeks. Borneo Eared Frog tadpoles are huge, and so are young at morphing. Young Borneo Eared Frogs live around the edges of the pools, before making their way back up into the canopy. In captivity, Borneo Eared Frogs are typically bred in a rain chamber. Check out our video of Josh's Frogs Rain Chamber Setup.

Natural Range: In the wild, Borneo Eared Frogs inhabit the canopy of tropical rainforests, and are endemic to Borneo. Their wood grained appearance does a great job hiding these frogs as they sleep during the day.

History in the Hobby: Borneo Eared Frogs have long been sought after in the United States hobby. Once quite rare, only now are Borneo Eared Frogs beginning to become more available to the general public. Wild caught animals imported over the years, in addition to offspring produced in zoos, make up the current founder population of this species in captivity. 

Links of Interest:

Wikipedia Article on File-Eared Frogs

American Museum of Natural History - Polypedates otilophus

Frogs of Borneo - Great pictures!

IUCN Redlist of Threatened Species - Borneo Eared Frogs

Still not sure if Borneo Eared Frogs from Josh's Frogs are the right pet frog for you? Read the reviews below and see what other customers are saying!