The Most Poisonous Frog

7 Most Deadly Poisonous Frogs through out the

Globe

Golden Poison Frog (Phyllobates terribilis):

is a poison dart frog endemic to the Pacific
coast of Colombia.
 Lovely Poison Frog (Phyllobates lugubris)
- is a species of frog in the Dendrobatidae family.
It is found in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and
Panama.
 Blue Poison Dart Frog (Dendrobates
azureus)
- is a species of poison dart frog found in the forests surrounded by the Sipaliwini
savannah, which is located in southern Suriname and northern to central Brazil.
Dendrobates azureus is widely known as the blue poison dart frog or by its Tirio Indian
name, okopipi .
 Strawberry Poison Dart Frog
- The strawberry poison frog or strawberry poison-dart frog (Oophaga pumilio) is a
species of small amphibian poison dart frog found in Central America. It is common
throughout its range, which extends from eastern central Nicaragua through Costa Rica
and northwestern Panama.
 Red-backed Poison Frog
- The Red-backed Poison Frog (Ranitomeya reticulatus) is a species of frog in the
family Dendrobatidae. It is an arboreal insectivorous species, and is the second-most
poisonous species in the genus, after R. variabilis.
 Dyeing Dart Frog
- Dendrobates tinctorius, also known by the common name dyeing dart frog, is a
species of poison dart frog. It is the third largest species, reaching lengths of 50
millimetres (2.0 in).
 Giant Leaf Frog
-The Giant leaf frog (Phyllomedusa bicolor) is a hylid frog found throughout the Amazon
Rainforest of northern Bolivia, western and northern Brazil, south-eastern Colombia, eastern
Peru, southern and eastern Venezuela, and the Guianas. Locally, it also occurs in riverine
forest in the Cerrado. This species is now jeopardized by biopiracy because it produces a
waxy secretion that may have medicinal uses against AIDS, cancer and other diseases.
 The golden poison frog (Phyllobates terribilis), also known as
the golden frog, golden poison arrow frog, or golden dart frog,
is a poison dart frog endemic to the Pacific coast of Colombia.
The optimal habitat of P. terribilis is the rainforest with high rain
rates (5 m or more per year), altitudes between 100 and 200 m,
temperatures of at least 26C, and relative humidity of 8090%.
In the wild, P. terribilis is a social animal, living in groups of up
to six individuals; however, captive P. terribilis specimens can
live in much larger groups. These frogs are often considered
innocuous due to their small size and bright colours, but wild
frogs are lethally toxic, and may be the most poisonous of any
living animal.
 Poison
-The golden poison frog's skin is densely coated in
an alkaloid toxin, one of a number of poisons common to
dart frogs (batrachotoxins). This poison prevents its
victim's nerves from transmitting impulses, leaving
the muscles in an inactive state of contraction. This can
lead to heart failure or fibrillation. Some native people use
this poison to hunt by coating darts with the frog's poison.
Alkaloid batrachotoxins can be stored by frogs for years
after the frog is deprived of a food-based source, and such
toxins do not readily deteriorate, even when transferred to
another surface.
 The golden poison frog is not venomous, but
poisonous: venomous animals have a delivery
method for the toxin, such as fangs or spines,
while poisonous animals and plants do not have a
delivery method and rely on transference of the
toxin, typically but not limited to ingestion. Like
most poison dart frogs, P. terribilis uses poison
only as a self-defense mechanism and not for
killing prey. The most venomous animal, in terms
of LD50, is the inland taipan, although its venom
is less potent than the defensive toxins in P.
terribilis.
 The average dose carried will vary between
locations, and consequent local diet, but the
average wild P. terribilis is generally estimated
to contain about one milligram of poison,
enough to kill about 10,000 mice. This
estimate will vary in turn, but most agree this
dose is enough to kill between 10 and 20
humans, which correlates to up to two African
bull elephants. This is roughly 15,000 humans
per gram.
 The golden poison frog, like most other poisonous
frogs, stores its poison in skin glands. Due to their
poison, the frogs taste vile to predators; P.
terribilis poison kills whatever eats it, except for
one snake species, Liophis epinephelus. This snake is
resistant to the frog's poison, but is not completely
immune.
The poisonous frogs themselves are perhaps the only
creatures to be immune to this poison. Batrachotoxin
attacks the sodium channels of nerve cells, but the frog
has special sodium channels the poison cannot harm.
 Description
- P. terribilis is the largest species of poison dart frog, and can
reach a size of 55 mm as adults, with females typically being
larger than males. Like all poison dart frogs, the adults are
brightly coloured, but they lack the dark spots present in many
other dendrobatids. The frog's colour pattern
is aposematic (which is a warning pigmentation to warn
predators of its toxicity). The frog has tiny adhesive disks on
its toes, which aid climbing of plants. It also has a bone plate
in the lower jaw, which gives it the appearance of having teeth,
a distinctive feature not observed in the other species
of Phyllobates. The frog is normally diurnal. P. terribilisoccurs
in three different colour varieties or morphs:
 Behavior
- P. terribilis is considered to be one of the most
intelligent anurans. Like all poison dart frogs,
captives can recognize human caregivers after
exposure of a few weeks. They are also extremely
successful tongue hunters, using their long, adhesive
tongues to catch food, and almost never miss a
strike. This success at tongue-hunting implies better
brainpower and resolution of eyesight than some
other frogs.