Introduction
The Oriental Fire Bellied Toad (Bombina orientalis) is a very commonly kept amphibian and is often some keepers first amphibian. The fire bellied toad is actually a frog that originates from Korea, China, and parts of Russia. It is a small and very vocal amphibian that makes a wonderful first pet!
Size & Longevity
The Fire Bellied Toad will reach an average of 1.5-2 inches and can live for up to 20 years.
Tank
A pair of Fire Bellied Toads will need a 10 gallon tank, minimum, but bigger is always better as these are very active amphibians. The tank should be half land/half water but many keepers have them in various setups that work well for them. There should ideally be at least 1 hide per frog in the tank.
Substrate
Substrate for the land section can be organic topsoil, reptisoil, eco earth, or a bioactive mix, some keepers also use sand but I find the soil is better for them.
Substrate for the water section can be river rocks, sand, or bare bottom, try to avoid gravel as they can easily ingest this but can barely digest it.
Heating
No form of heating is necessary unless your tank gets below 60-65 degrees Fahrenheit often. Fire Bellied Toads often to well at room temperature (75-78 degrees Fahrenheit). If you do need heating, a low wattage basking light or ceramic heat emitter can be used, but make sure it is connected to a thermostat.
Lights?
Lighting is not necessary for the Fire Bellied Toads but a 10.0 UVB striplight can be beneficial and give off a nice day/night cycle.
Water & Humidity
About half of the tank should be filled with 1-3 inches of water. These frogs often like to be able to touch the bottom of the water area so the water should not be too deep. Humidity should be around 60-70%, the water section of the tank should help with that so you should not have to spray the tank down too often but it is good to give it a little spray down every now and then to give them a sense of a natural rainfall.
Food
Fire Bellied Toads are primarily insectivores and will eat a staple diet of crickets and dubia roaches. They can also have cut up earthworms, mealworms, and black soldier fly larva occasionally. Waxworms and small hornworms can be offered as treats. Some keepers offer small fish such as baby guppies and rosy red as treats.
Handling
Fire Bellied Toads are much more of a display species and should only be handled when absolutely necessary. When handling a fire bellied toad, use gloves and always wash your hands before and after handling them.
Cohabitating?
Fire Bellied Toads can be kept in small colonies if the tank is big enough (no more than 2 per 10 gallon) and it is best to only have 1 male per tank as the males can end up fighting over the females, however, if no females are put in the tank, males usually do fine together.