AVS Q&A with… Julio Rodriguez

This week’s Q&A is with the OG, Julio Rodriguez.  Julio has been working with poison frogs for several decades, and he has traveled to Central and South America to study them in situ.  Julio’s dedication to poison frogs is undeniable, and he has contributed so much to the hobby.  He is a skilled keeper/breeder, photographer, and world traveler.  Let’s go!!!

Tell us about your background.  What are some of the poignant moments in your life that led to you keeping poison frogs?

As a kid, I always had a passion for animals so it didn’t matter where I went. If it was at the beach, I remember catching pipe fish and crabs by the ocean and searching the marsh for fiddler crabs. As I got older, keeping all kinds of reptiles against my parents’ will and later getting yelled at when they found out, though the prices were always kept low when they asked how much until I saw a poison dart frog at a pet store and my mom saw the price tag and said, "Forget about it!" That was back in 1990 when an Azureus went for $300. She reluctantly bought me a Dendrobates truncatus for $25.  When I got to hIgh school, I was blessed to have a high school biology teacher who had a connection at the Bronx Zoo's Reptile House, and so I got to be an intern my junior and senior year and later stayed on as a volunteer. I got to work with a lot of endangered animals and even got to breed some while under my care for the first time at the facility. Being there further fueled my passion to concentrate on Old World chameleons, day geckos and dart frogs. I was all about the colorful herps! 

You are really the authority on obligates, especially large obligates.  I know you’ve worked with tincs and other species throughout your long tenure as a keeper.  What led you to primarily focus on large obligates?

I am definitely not the authority on obligates. There are a few people who definitely know more. My focus on large obligates was mainly due to having little time on my hands and not having time to raise any tadpoles, which is what led me to mainly working with large obligates. In 2010, I changed my entire collection to just keeping Oophaga pumilio due to not having to care for tadpoles. Before Tesoros came along, some of us kept large obligates but definitely not in great numbers or with great success. When Tesoros was able to export, it was a dream come true as many species that we only saw in books were able to come into the hobby. Being that I live in NYC, I am limited on space so some of the Oophaga pumilio I kept had to be moved to make room for the large obligates.    

Your passion for photography is evident.  Tell us about the rig and setup you use for photographing frogs.  

My dad was a photographer, so I worked with him growing up. My dad was one of those people who refused to go digital in the 90s and still shot film due to the definition and sharpness. I personally never had a passion for photography until after college. I was mainly focused on animals and science. My dad always shot on any brand of camera. Personally, I stuck with Canon, and the past few years just use a Canon R5 with RF100MM F2 Macro or a 35 MM RF macro as well. My. photography got better during COVID as I had a lot more time on my hands to play around more with my camera. 

You’ve been fortunate to travel to some amazing poison frog locales.  Where are some of your favorite places you’ve traveled?  

Yes, I have been very fortunate to travel to some amazing places like Costa Rica, Panama, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia. However, my favorite place has been Madagascar. Unfortunately since having kids, I have not been able to travel back to Madagascar and had to pull out of several trips with Black Jungle due to life and kids. Colombia and Ecuador are a close second. They have some of the most pristine rainforests and are fairly unexplored due to some danger factors, but with that comes such beauty among the chaos. 

We’ve all drooled over your amazing photos of Oophaga sylvatica ‘Koi’ and its many variants.  I’m sure finding them in the field was exciting.  Are they abundant in certain areas?  When do you think they will be available legally in the hobby?

Unfortunately, they are not abundant. We visited several populations, and on an all day hike we were lucky to see about ten frogs. Some other populations we visited we were lucky to see one or two frogs after several hours of hiking. Unfortunately, those populations have been heavily smuggled and the populations have really taken a hit.

With some luck, Tesoros can hopefully get their export permit for the Koi by early next year and hopefully we can see them in the hobby in 2026. 

Who are some of your influences in the hobby?

Definitely the pioneers in the hobby like Tor Limbo, Todd Kelly, and Ron Galiardo are the top 3 names that come to mind. They helped with a lot in the hobby and also caused me to be in a lot of debt. (Just kidding!)

Finally, tell folks how they can find you online.

You can check out my Instagram account @dartfrogs or my FB page: Frog Hub