African dwarf frog

Quick facts

Adult size

4 cm

Lifespan

can live up to 5 years

Tank zone

bottom

Temperament

peaceful

Difficulty

intermediate

Water parameters

Temperature

22–28°C

pH

6.5 to 7.8

Hardness

4 to 18 dGH

Tank requirements

Minimum volume

40 L

Minimum length

40 cm

Flow

low

Lighting

dim preferred

Substrate

fine

Hiding spots

needed

Lid

required - jumper

Feeding

Diet: carnivore, feeds primarily at the bottom.

Frozen bloodworms, sinking carnivore pellets specifically formulated for amphibians, occasional live blackworms. Cannot compete with fast fish for food; target-feed with tweezers or a turkey baster.

Nocturnal feeder; drop food after lights out so it can eat without competition.

Compatibility

• Frequently confused with African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) which grows to 12 cm and eats everything. ADFs stay small and have webbed front feet; clawed frogs have separated finger-like front feet
• Poor eyesight; cannot compete with fast fish for food. Fast feeders like tetras and barbs will starve them in shared tanks
• Must surface to breathe air; water depth should be moderate (under 40 cm) so they don't exhaust themselves swimming up
• Will eat adult shrimp; not shrimp-safe
• Tight lid required with no gaps; can escape through small openings
• Best in a species tank or with very calm slow tankmates like nerite snails, mystery snails, or a single betta

Habitat

Native to shallow, slow-moving freshwater in central and west Africa. Fully aquatic (unlike many frog species) but must surface to breathe air. Tanks need access to the surface; water depth over 30 cm makes surfacing tiring. They're clumsy swimmers and prefer walking along the bottom or resting on plants. Poor eyesight means they find food mostly by smell.

Breeding

Breeds readily in captivity. Males sing (a quiet buzzing sound) at night to attract females. The pair enters amplexus and the female kicks eggs to the surface in small bursts over several hours. Eggs hatch in 1-2 days. Tadpoles are fully aquatic and take 6-8 weeks to develop legs and absorb the tail. Feed tadpoles on infusoria and powdered fry food.

Common problems

Often confused with African clawed frogs (Xenopus laevis) in stores. Clawed frogs grow to 12 cm and eat everything in the tank. ADFs stay under 5 cm. The key difference: ADFs have webbed front feet, clawed frogs have individual fingers. Other issues: ADFs are poor competitors for food and will starve in tanks with fast-eating fish. Hand-feeding or target-feeding with a turkey baster helps. Susceptible to chytrid fungus and bacterial skin infections, especially in dirty water.

Bioload

Bioload coefficient: 0.7 (small fully-aquatic amphibian; comparable to a small fish per body mass but messier eaters).

Bioload coefficients are calibrated against the neon tetra as the anchor (1.0). See the methodology page for the formula and how each value was derived.

Further reading

• How to cycle a fish tank
• Stocking ideas by tank size