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       Acrylic on illustration board 40" x 15" $17,400  | 
    
        The dart
      frogs of the genus Dendrobates are a well-known group of beautiful
      and tiny diurnal amphibians found throughout the American tropics.
      In addition to producing complex alkaloid skin secretions, this
      group is remarkable in exhibiting astonishing parental care within
      its ranks. The Central American species D. pumilio deposits
      several eggs on a leaf on the forest floor, which are guarded
      by the male. Upon hatching, the tadpoles wriggle onto the females
      back, and are taxied up the trunk of a tree to a pre-selected
      bromeliad, where they are deposited into one of the water vessels
      formed within the axils of these arboreal epiphytes. Every few
      days, the female lays an unfertilized egg for each of her offspring
      to feed upon. Incidental creatures in this painting include an
      Agouti (Dasyprocta punctata), a Spectacled Antpitta (Hylopezus
      perspicallitus), a Racerunner (Ameiva festiva), a
      Lanternbug (Fulgora laternaria), a Leaf-Footed Bug (Anisosceles
      sp.), a leafhopper (Umbonia sp.), a Consul Butterfly
      (Consul fabius), and numerous ants of the genus Pheidole,
      which feed upon the leaves of Piper trees, like the one
      immediately behind the frog.  |