Tiny frog is world’s most poisonous animal
THE golden poison dart frog is a very deceptive creature – despite its tiny two-inch frame, it happens to be the most poisonous creature on Earth. A single amphibian packs enough venom in it to kill over 10 adult men in about 3 minutes.
In fact, the species gets its name from the native Emberá hunters of Colombia, who once used the frogs to make lethal blowgun darts.
The bright yellow frogs can only be found in small rainforest on the Pacific coast of Colombia, and their coloring can sometimes vary between yellow, orange, or pale green. The glamour of their appearance is a deliberate ploy, a tactic called aposematic or ‘warning’ coloration, to ward off potential predators.
As proven by a 2001 study by Kyle Summers of East Carolina University in Greenville, the brightest frogs are always the most toxic.
Simply coming in contact with a golden poison dart frog doesn’t necessarily put you in mortal dangers, as the amphibians only produce and excrete the potent toxin through their skin only when they feel threatened.
But picking up one of these tiny creatures and holding it in your hand for more than a few seconds without gloves is suicide. The frog’s skin quickly becomes covered in alkaloid poison (batrachotoxin) that has the ability to ‘freeze’ nerves, stopping them from transmitting impulses.
Within minutes, the victim experiences uncontrollable muscle contractions and eventually heart failure.
Sadly, the magnificent golden poison dart frogs are an endangered species due to the widespread destruction of their natural rainforest habitat through deforestation, and illegal gold mining, cocoa cultivation, and logging.
To protect the species, international conservation charity World Land Trust set up the Rana Terribilis Amphibian Reserve in the wettest tropical rainforests of western Colombia.
Currently, medical researchers and amphibian experts are interested in discovering possible medicinal uses to the poison dart frog’s venom, especially as painkillers.
“It’s not that the compounds cause toxic effects that is of interest here,” explained Richard Fitch of Indiana State University, speaking to the BBC.
“It’s the way they do it that is useful to the scientist and physician. In the past, alkaloids have been found to possess cancer-fighting and pain numbing properties, and stimulants as potent as caffeine.
Of course, the venom cannot directly be administered as medicine, but understanding its structure and chemistry could help design better drugs.
“If we can cut the key just right, we get the activity we want,” Fitch said. “That’s perhaps a tall order, as we don’t quite know what the bus looks like, but we have a key and that’s a start.”