# Carnivorous Plants In The Vivarium



## Nate (Jan 5, 2009)

I think this topic has two sides, and I would like to hear it from both! Is it acceptable/okay to put a carnivorous plant in the dart frog vivarium? You can choose the certain species option if you think that only certain Carnivorous plants can go in, or any of the other options- It's your opinion!

My personal view is that it is okay to put in some of the smaller species that can't grab one of the large frogs for a snack,  if you are putting it in a thumbnail I think that the small species of butterwort can only be used with larger thumbnails.

So, what's your opinion? 

If you have kept carnivorous plants for a long time (long enough that people could consider you an expert) please say so. that way I have an expert opinion to fall back on if its to controversial!


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

Ive got over 10 years experience.
Some nepenthes yes- ones like ampullaria with small pitchers that couldn't trap even a small frog. but many are highland type and want a 20 degree drop in temps at night down to the low 60's or high 50's
most nepenthes I would think wouldn't be suitable, as they can get HUGE and the upper pitchers are the most spectacular and you would never see them develop if you kept trimming it. One of mine grows at least 4 feet vertically each growing season. Many have constricted waists to their pitchers that are specifically designed to not let things escape. You may also have to feed twice as many ff's because nepenthes are extremely efficient at luring and capturing food
I consider highland and ultra highland nepenthes to be by far the most difficult plants I have ever grown. orchids are simple in comparison To do these well, you pretty much need to have a greenhouse or grow chamber that can be climate controlled to their needs. Without the nightly temp drops and sustained high humidity, these plants just give up on life. 
Lowland nepenthes are far easier to grow, but the highlanders are the most spectacular. 
All nepenthes produce 2 types of pitchers, upper and lower, the uppers are the best looking, but the plant might need to be 10 feet tall before they are produced

venus fly trap- in an adult tinc tank yes, in a thumbnail tank no [email protected]#$ng way! Thats an expensive snack for a cheap plant! Don't believe a flytrap can catch a frog? search youtube for flytrap eats frog

sarracenias- only purpurea stays small enough for most vivs, and frogs could get out if they needed to, others can get to be 3 ft.

darlingtonia-aka- cobra lily- no. like it cooler. pretty much guarantee a frog would never get out, you'd never see it flower w/o winter dormancy get 3 ft tall when mature

butterworts-yes

utricularias (bladderworts)-yes

sundews- I wouldn't just because they are so sticky frogs crawling on them wouldn't keep them looking good for long. Don't know if the "dew" would irritate frog skin

heliamphoras- maybe. Seem to like it cooler in my experience, some can take warmer temps, tend to collect too many flies too quickly and pitchers get overloaded and go brown

just my opinion


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## JoshH (Feb 13, 2008)

Well covered Jason, two types I use in my tanks are tropical pings and bladderworts. There are plenty of great epiphytic utricularias that are safe and have beautiful flowers. I cant see a butterwort even harming a thumbnail, and they typical do great as well with plenty of light.


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## Mikembo (Jan 26, 2009)

Thought I would post the vidio up of a flytrap catching a frog!

Well I Guess it doesn't work!

here is another try of the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EG9PvoORmIw


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## MonkeyFrogMan28 (Feb 3, 2009)

i would prefer to leave the plants out just so nothing could happen. my frogs are worth more to me than a plant soo i dont take any chances at all.


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

bladderworts and butterworts pose no threats whatsoever to any frog, as their mechanisms for trapping prey aren't designed for prey that large. Both have beautiful flowers and growth habits that, combined with their preference for moist/wet areas make them ideal viv subjects.
On their own, nepenthes and other carnis make fascinating terrarium or bog garden subjects, and I strongly encourage folks to give them a try. I live in a log cabin, and had a bad problem with carpenter ants... until one day they found my nepenthes ventrata in my window. One curious ant's pheromone trail led them all to it. For three days the plant was covered in literally dozens of ants, getting drunk off the nectar around the peristomes of the pitchers, then fallng into them. The nectar really does stupify them its neat to see. After the three days, there were no more ants, and after 4 years they still haven't returned. Best bug control ever


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## Link3898 (Sep 18, 2008)

Hey Jason, what are you watering your carnivores with that are outside vivs? i was using RO water but switched to aged tap water when i kept having problems with leavs turning brown and spotted.


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## back2eight (Dec 19, 2005)

I agree except for the harm is to the plants, not the frogs. VENUS FLY TRAPS, SARRACENIA DARLINGTONIA are TEMPERATE plants and a tank environment is completely the wrong environment. Your plant will die if you try to grow it as if it is a tropical plant. They need a cold winter dormancy. This is a must. Plus these plants grow OUTSIDE in the FULL SUN all day long for optimal conditions. They are very enjoyable plants, but you have to grow them correctly.

Most Nepenthes are fine in tanks for a little while, but they soon grow too tall. They, too, would best be enjoyed outside of a tank. 

Butterworts and sundews are so low to the ground that there is no way in the world you can get enough light to them in a tank environment. They will die, so don't even try it. If these are grown in a terrarium, the terrarium is typically of the type that is made just for these plants so the light can get to them really good. In our dart frog tanks, there is no enough light is getting to the bottom of the tank for these plants.

This subject is very tired. You can do a search and find all kinds of responses to this same subject. It seems that someone asks it about every other week and the answers are always the same.


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## back2eight (Dec 19, 2005)

Oh, I forgot to add that I have been growing carnivorous plants for 8 years. I got into them all the way like I do everything, researched it to death and read every book. The greatest risk of putting these plants in vivs is a risk to the plants, not the frogs. It would be a shame to grow these in a viv and not be able to enjoy them the way you could if you would put them outside.


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

Every plant I grow is watered with rain water link. 
BACK 2 EIGHT- I agree with you except that I can get plenty of light to the bottom of my vivs,as I use at least 2 watts per gallon, 3 if I can for good riccia growth and so the bottoms get plenty of light.
If I wasn't clear above, I stated that most carnis would suffer in viv environments. You can do saracennias, but they don't usually flower and get too big. 
I never grow my darlingtonias in full sun, I grow them outside on the north side of my house in morning sun, and they do very well. 
I agree this subject is getting old, but they are awesome plants, so I understand why people would want to try. 
nepenthes are as close to animals as plants get.


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## raimeiken (Dec 24, 2006)

back2eight said:


> Oh, I forgot to add that I have been growing carnivorous plants for 8 years. I got into them all the way like I do everything, researched it to death and read every book. The greatest risk of putting these plants in vivs is a risk to the plants, not the frogs. It would be a shame to grow these in a viv and not be able to enjoy them the way you could if you would put them outside.


if only it was humid out here in AZ I'd have a big collection of them by now


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