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Encyclopedia / Frogs & Newts / Surinam toad
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Variations

1 kinds · tap one for a closer look

Surinam toad

Pipa pipa · Pipa toad, Star-fingered toad, Pipa

Strictly aquatic and ambush predator; swallows any fish that fits in its mouth.

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15 cmAdult size ✓
UnknownTemperature ?
UnknownpH ?
UnknownSmallest tank ?
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This one is best kept on its own, or with its own kind.

Not recommended
  • Surinam toad should be kept without other species.
Not recommended
  • Surinam toad should be kept without other species.
Not recommended
  • Surinam toad should be kept without other species.
Facts checked against sources on 16 Oct 2026. ✓ means a source backs it; ? means no reliable source yet. See sources

Care and water

Hardness ?Unknown
Group size ?Can live alone
Temperament ✓Semi-aggressive
Swims at ✓Bottom
Care level ?Hard
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan ✓8 years
Size in shops 5–10 cm
Growth Medium

Behavior

Strictly aquatic and ambush predator; swallows any fish that fits in its mouth. Best alone in a quiet, dim, deep tank with leaf litter.

Food

Live or frozen earthworms, blackworms, small fish and shrimp, found by touch, and sinking pellets.

Tap a food to see what it is.

Male or female

Adults of both sexes are a similar size; a female ready to breed shows a ring-shaped swelling around the cloaca, and only females carry eggs in the back skin.

Health

Common problems. Tap one to see the signs. This is a guide, not a diagnosis.

Breeding

Egg-brooder · Hard

Pairs spawn in repeated upside-down turnovers in amplexus; the eggs sink into the female's back skin and develop directly, emerging as about 2 cm froglets after 12-20 weeks (3-4 months), with no free tadpole stage.

Pairing

A group of adults of both sexes in a large tank.

Setup

150 L+ tank with deep soft water, no strong flow, dark leaf litter.

What starts it

Raised water level and temperature with abundant food.

Eggs

About 60-100 eggs, embedded in the female's back; young emerge after 12-20 weeks.

Raising the fry

Froglets emerge fully formed; feed small worms and daphnia.

Common mistakes
  • Strong flow stresses them
  • Bright light
  • Mixing with fish
Full breeding guide, day-by-day plan and simulator →

Where it lives in the wild

RegionNorthern South America – Amazon basin, Guianas & Trinidad
Rivers and lakesAmazon and Orinoco basins and rivers of the Guianas
HabitatMuddy, slow waters in forest
Native rangeAbout 2,500 km across
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The story of the surinam toad

A very flat, leaf-like aquatic frog with star-tipped fingers from northern South America. The female carries the eggs embedded in the skin of her back until they emerge as tiny froglets.

Carl Linnaeus described the Surinam toad in 1758. It is famous for its flat body and unusual way of raising its young. Eggs sink into the female's back, where the young develop until they emerge as tiny toadlets.

First described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758.

  • Eggs develop in pockets in the female's back skin.
  • The young emerge as fully formed toadlets.
  • It has star-shaped tips on its fingers to sense prey.

Sources

11 facts checked with sources