Painted mantella
Mantella madagascariensis
The striking coloration of the painted mantella serves as a warning signal for predators, alerting them to its toxicity. However, it is also assumed that the striking coloration plays an important role in mate selection and that striking colors are preferred. The painted mantella displays an unusual form of clasping for mating (amplexus), whereby the male places the ventral side of his thighs on the female's head. This allows the sperm to travel along the female's back to the laid eggs.
This species of painted mantella is often confused with Mantella baroni and Mantella pulchra, two other species of the Mantellinae family.
| Classification | Frogs, Madagascar tree frogs (Mantellinae, 191 species) | |
| Habitat | subtropical rainforests of eastern Madagascar, along rivers and streams | |
| Behaviour | diurnal ground dweller | |
| Food | small insects such as ants and other invertebrates | |
| Weight | up to 4 g | |
| Body length | male up to 22 mm, females up to 25 mm | |
| Clutch (spawn) | on stones, near water | |
| Duration of egg laying to hatching | until first rainfall | |
| Stage as tadpole | develop in water | |
| Use | Terraristics | |
| |Current population | unknown, decreasing | |
| In Zurich Zoo since | 2025 |
Distribution
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