#2021 Vitality Assembly #Golden Arrow Poison Frog is a very deceptive animal, although its length is only about 5 centimeters, it is the most poisonous animal in the world. The toxin in the body of a golden arrow poison frog can poison ten adults in three minutes. In fact, the frog got its name from the local hunters of Ambala, Colombia. They used to use this frog to make poisonous arrows.
Golden Arrow Poison Frog
One can find this bright yellow frog off the coast of Colombia in the Pacific Ocean. Their color sometimes varies between yellow, orange, and light green, and their appearance can scare off potential predators nearby. In 2001, Kyle Summers of Greenville East Carolina State University conducted a study that confirmed that the frog was the most toxic animal in the world.
Orange poison dart frog
Of course, encountering this poisonous frog does not mean that you will be poisoned immediately. Because the Golden Arrow Poison Frog will only secrete toxins when it feels threatened. However, if you want to hold this golden arrow poison frog in your hand and watch it, there is no doubt that it will be a stupid suicidal act. Because the alkaloid poison secreted by their skin can freeze nerves and prevent nerves from transmitting to impulses. Within a few minutes, the victim's muscles will contract unconsciously, and it will cause the heart to eventually stop beating.
Light green poison dart frog
Scientists have not yet been able to confirm how the frog got the poison. Scientists investigated the ancestors of the Golden Arrow Poison Frog 40-45 million years ago and found that they did not carry toxins. It is suspected that such creatures may not produce toxins, perhaps they absorb toxins from their prey (flies, poisonous ants, etc.). Due to their extremely high metabolic rate, they can quickly process venom and can develop super resistance to venom and can even absorb venom. The fact that the golden arrow frogs that people catch and breed do not produce toxins confirms this theory.
Red poison dart frog
It is worth mentioning that in 2014, Ralph Saporito of John Carroll University discovered that the poison dart frog can inherit venom from its mother, and after they absorb the venom during feeding, they will become poisonous themselves. Saporito explains that "the mother of the poison dart frog can protect them by delivering toxins to the eggs". Of course, the first thing that scares predators away is the bright color of their bodies.
Sadly, due to man-made reasons such as indiscriminate forest, this beautiful golden poison dart frog has become an endangered species. In order to better protect the golden poison dart frog, the World Land Trust, an international conservation agency, has established the Golden Poison Dart Frog Amphibian Nature Reserve in the wetlands of western Colombia.
Mixed color poison dart frog
The Indians of Ambala learned to remove their venom without harming the Golden Arrow Poison Frog. But one article after another at the BBC describes a more brutal way of ingesting venom. The locals would keep the frogs in hollow wooden sticks and wait until they needed them to pierce their throats with arrows, at which point the poison dart frogs would begin to secrete toxins. They secrete a lot of venom on their backs, and people can clearly see the white foam. After they stuck the venom with an arrow, the poison on the arrow could be retained for at least a year.
Blue poison dart frog
Currently, medical researchers are exploring the medical uses of golden arrow poison frog venom, especially their potential in painkillers. Richard Fitch of Indiana State University said alkaloids have anti-cancer and analgesic properties, as well as caffeine-like irritation, and understanding their structure and chemicals can help scientists design better drugs.