How can a poisonous frog kill you

You just licked a poison dart frog? Now what? Are you going to live? The golden poison dart frog is said to have enough toxin to kill men just by touching it. One conversation I had nearly 20 years ago with a former Army Ranger forever fascinated me with the poison dart frogs. He described a training mission with a young recruit who died unexpectedly after getting a simple cut by his own pocket knife.

As it turns out, a week earlier he had been messing with one of these poison dart frogs in the jungle — something I can tell you is not good for your karma. The result was a dead frog on the end of his blade. He never cleaned the blade, and in a terrible twist of fate, he cut himself with the tip of his knife. The toxin entered his skin causing cardiac arrest within a few minutes.

There are more than species of little frogs that live in the neotropics that are collectively called poison frogs — or more colloquially, poison dart frogs. The latter name came from the fact that indigenous hunters would dip their blow darts in a concoction made of dead frogs to make their blow darts extremely lethal. Only a few have the intense toxicity for that.

This frog is famous for being one of the most poisonous animals in the world and a single frog carries 1, micrograms of poison. The Indians would rub the tip of a dart not an arrow along the back of a live frog. Once dry, the poison would remain active on the dart for up to a year. The back of a single frog would provide enough poison for two or three darts; the frog was unharmed and released back into the wild. The Indians used the darts to hunt mammals and birds. Golden Poison Frogs are territorial and live on the ground.

The female lays eggs on the ground and the male transports the larvae to permanent pools. The species feeds on small invertebrates such as flies, beetles, crickets, ants and termites. Probably due to its lethal deterrent, the Golden Poison Frog appears bold when danger threatens; it does not hide, but simply hops away.

The poison is the only defence the frog has against predators, it has no delivery system such as sharp teeth or spines and can only secrete the poison through its skin. Very small quantities of its poison can be fatal if they enter the bloodstream.

Common Name: Golden Poison Frog. Scientific Name: Phyllobates terribilis. Type: Amphibians. Diet: Carnivore. Group Name: Army.

Size: 1 inch. Weight: Less than 1 ounce. Size relative to a paper clip:. Least Concern Extinct. Current Population Trend: Decreasing. This photo was submitted to Your Shot, our photo community on Instagram. Follow us on Instagram at natgeoyourshot or visit us at natgeo. Share Tweet Email. Go Further. Animals Wild Cities This wild African cat has adapted to life in a big city. Animals This frog mysteriously re-evolved a full set of teeth. Animals Wild Cities Wild parakeets have taken a liking to London.