Offspring in the vivarium at Chemnitz Zoo
German first offspring of the Little Winker Frogs
Chemnitz Zoo was the first zoological garden in Germany to successfully breed little winker frogs.
It was only in July 2015 that Chemnitz Zoo received 15 animals from Schönbrunn Zoo in Vienna. The first tadpoles were seen just five months later. The tadpole stage lasts around three months, after which the adult frog develops. The first juvenile has completely metamorphosed and further tadpoles are on the verge of metamorphosis.
As the name suggests, the males wave their hind legs, which serves as a visual signal for conspecifics. Small waving frogs reach a body size of
2 cm and are only found in the north of the island of Borneo. There they favour humid primary forests as their habitat. This frog species is still largely unexplored and nothing is known about its abundance.
The vivarium is the unique feature of the Chemnitz zoo. Around 60 species of amphibians are kept and bred in four rooms at different temperatures, a diversity that can only be seen in a few places in the world.
As at 31 December 2015, there were almost 400 amphibians living in the zoo, which is more than a third of the total animal population. The largest representative in the vivarium is the Chinese giant salamander, while the smallest can be found among the colourful tree climbing frogs.
In 2015, four new species were added to the animal population: the very rare and endangered emperor newt, the eared frog, the white-bearded frog and the little winker frog. A further three new amphibian species were added in 2016.
The little winker frogs are not yet on display as they are behind the scenes due to the breeding programme.
Opening hours of the zoo:
9 a.m. - 7 p.m., last admission 6 p.m.